


Heroes of the past

by jenna1931



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Gen, I suck at history, I'm bad at tagging please help, I'm trying to keep it general, Non-sexual slavery (chapter 2), Past Miraculous Holders, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, english isn't my mother language, free form, suicide attempt (chapter 2)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2020-10-14 23:36:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 24,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20609204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jenna1931/pseuds/jenna1931
Summary: Marinette was watching a documentary: Heroes of the Past – Fiction or reality? Tikki and Plagg mumble about the different so called heroes they were about to talk about.“Do you happen to know them?” asked Marinette.Tikki shared a glance with Plagg before turning to her Chosen. “Yeah... There were times when they were our enemies, others when...”She couldn’t finish her sentence, lost in thoughts and emotions. Plagg came to her help. “Some were literally our Bearer.”---------Marinette and Adrien will learn more about their Miraculous then never before.





	1. Tales of Tikki and Plagg

**Author's Note:**

> I know a lot of people has designed Past Miraculous Users and even given names to them. Some have been seen canon, others are fan characters and others are only headcanons. I don't know what is what, and, I swear, I've never read fanfics about these characters. If I'm using a character you've created and you don't want me to use said character, please kindly contact me and I'll change/correct everything that can be corrected. If, on the contrary, you agree for me to use your character's name and/or design, please tell me if I can show a picture of the character with proper credits.  
I'm doing it for fun, not to take credit on others works.  
Also, please consider that, even if I'm doing researches for my fic, some events can be misinterpreted or unrealistic.  
I actually suck at History.  
\----  
This hasn't been prove read yet

Paris was safe.   
Hawkmoth wasn’t a threat anymore.   
They were now together.   
They were a happy family.   
And Paris didn’t need heroes nowadays.

Marinette was watching TV, and Adrien came to join her on the couch after tucking the kids in bed. She was watching a documentary:  _ Heroes of the Past – Fiction or reality? _ While the narrator presented the different subjects of today’s episode, the young heroes heard Tikki and Plagg, sitting on the coffee table and munching on cookies and Camembert, mumble about the different so called heroes they were about to talk about. Adrien and Marinette shared a questioning look before turning to the kwamis.

“Do you happen to know them?” asked Marinette. “After all, you told me you were thousands of years old; maybe you met some of them?” With the kwamis' attitude, it was sometimes hard to remember this fact.

Tikki shared a glance with Plagg before turning to her Chosen. “Yeah... There were times when they were our enemies, others when...”

She couldn’t finish her sentence, lost in thoughts and memories. Plagg came to her rescue. “Some were literally our Bearer.”

“So you’re telling us that these guys were their era’s Ladybug and Chat Noir?!” asked Adrien, almost shocked by the revelation. After all, the host of the documentary presented heroes from ages ago. Did these heroes really use Miraculous? “I understand you, kwamis, are as old as the world...”

“The universe, actually, but that is for Plagg and I” corrected Tikki.

“... wait what?!” Marinette exclaimed, looking at Adrien in disbelief. He only found in himself to shrug, waiting for the rest of the explanation.

Tikki and Plagg shared another glance, then nodded. Their Chosen had found each other, their feelings for each other were in perfect balance and the world didn’t need Ladybug and Chat Noir’s services at the moment. Telling them everything, but absolutely  _ everything _ could not only help their Partners with their powers and legacy, but also help them, the kwamis, to lighten the loss of their Past Chosen.

“What do you mean, you’re ‘as old as the universe’?!” asked Adrien. “You don’t mean that literally... right?”

Tikki giggled at Adrien’s expression, and Plagg just sighed. She then turned to Marinette. “Remember when I told you about the Egyptian Ladybug?”

Marinette nodded. “Yeah, she existed like five thousand years ago! And you told me after we defeated the Pharaoh that you were way older, but... as old as the universe?”

Tikki agreed and Plagg swallowed another piece of Camembert, readying himself for the long and fastidious explanations to come. “We’re from what humans call the ‘Big Bang’” said Tikki. “We are born at the same time, when the universe was  _ created _ in a large scale  _ destruction _ . We’ve been alone for a long time before other kwamis join us, but most of them were born when humans began to populate Earth.”

The young parents weren’t listening to the TV anymore. How could they? When all they talked about was only speculations, they had right in front of them witnesses of these heroes’ actions, feelings, dreams and nightmares, struggles... and death. Marinette snuggled against Adrien. They have lived so much since they received they Miraculous, and it was only ten years ago. What was it to live beyond your umpteenth Chosen?

“When I spoke to Master Fu about the Miraculous, you all told me that you couldn’t interact with other beings before a mage created the Miraculous” realised Marinette, Adrien gasping in surprise beside her. He probably never had this kind of conversation with the Last Guardian, and was learning more about the Miraculous than never before. “So... when did you start communicating with humans in the first place?”

Tikki took a look at Plagg, hoping for him to join the explanations, but he stayed where he was, listening like a good student. Tikki knew at this moment that he didn’t want to participate, at least yet.  _ He’ll speak when we’ll talk about his Kittens, _ Tikki thought with a sigh. “My Miraculous and Plagg's have been created by a mage with black and red jade from the Kunlun mountains tens of cycles ago...”

“Cycles?” repeated Adrien, perplexed.

“Sorry!” realised Tikki. “For us, a cycle is one thousand years.”

“So your Miraculous have been created about ten thousand years ago!?” calculated Adrien, almost shocked at the realization.

“Pretty much” agreed Plagg.

“At this time, everything that couldn’t be explained came from magic” resumed Tikki. “But this mage had this rare ability to sense real magic, therefor to sense our presence. He had this idea to create objects to which we could be attached and, thanks to him, be able to communicate with humans. At first, these were black and red jade statuettes, but with what we could bring to humankind, these weren’t very practicals. The jade later have been embedded into weapons, then turned into jewels.” Adrien took a look to his ring, then turned to Marinette’s earrings. “But ten thousand years ago, they would have looked weird, no? I mean...” He searched for his words. “At this time, the general fashion probably didn’t incorporate these kind of jewels, no?”

Tikki giggled, understanding what bothered the former model. “We also could choose the general appearance of the jewel, so they could fit the era we lived in.”

That was legit. After all, when came that time when they switched Miraculous out of emergency, Marinette’s ring was different from Adrien’s, and Adrien’s earrings were different from Marinette’s – they had the occasion to talk about it since they revealed to each other. The inactive Miraculous shape seemed to change depending on the user, so it was only fair to guess that they looked different depending of the era’s fashion or culture.

“And then, what happened?” asked Marinette. “Did you know you could lent your powers to humans who wore your Miraculous, or did you discovered it by accident?”

“It was more of an accident than anything else” answered Tikki sheepishly, Plagg chuckling beside her.


	2. Coccinae and Pantheras

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta readers: Melyxan & VerooCasanova  
Thanks for the support, girls!

They didn’t trust him.  
After all, how could they?  
Even when he said it aloud, he couldn’t even trust himself.

Fulgentius Qaqii was a scientist of renown, a brilliant inventor and a respectable man. But he also was some lunatic who declared high and clear that magic was real. For his peers, magic was only scientific phenomenons yet to be explained. Fulgentius could agree with that statement, but he _ knew _ there existed real magic, phenomenons that no science could ever _ ever _ explain. For years, he did researches about unexplained phenomenons that happened around the globe, based on tales from travellers and merchants, legends and myths. He had to prove them, to all of them, that real magic was a thing.

Over the years, however, either he was too much in his researches to notice everything, or weird things really started to happen around him: a flower pot falling without anything to push it, or rain falling on a dying part of land without any clouds in the sky. It couldn’t be a coincidence. Even when his young assistant was gone and he was completely alone, he could sense a presence around him, and little things continued to happen. Nothing major, but just enough to catch his attention. Sometimes, he just pointed at something in his workshop and something, good or bad, happened to it.

It was it!  
It was what he was looking for for so long now!  
He had to do something!  
He had to find a way to interact with whatever caused these phenomenons!

Rummaging in his collection of artifacts and strange objects, he stumbled upon two natural stones he traded some years ago, appealed by them in a way he never was able to understand. He was told that these gems, one red and the other black, were from a far away mountain named Kunlun. Even if he knew his society was really advanced regarding the rest of the world, living on an island didn’t always had pros. After all, Atlantis had a lot of resources, but didn’t provide everything the Earth had to offer. He took the gems and installed them on a table. Beside the black jade, he put an hourglass that had been destroyed at his command, and a dead flower brought back to life beside the red one. If, as he thought, there was any kind of will behind this, they should understand, even if they didn’t speak the same language.

Fulgentius then watched the setup closely for anything to happen. Time passed and nothing moved until, after almost an entire night waiting, the black gem illuminated with an electric green light, transforming the natural stone into a cat-like statuette. Mere seconds later, the red one transformed into an insect-like statuette with a clear pink light. _ That's it! That would be the best proof ever! Magic _ _ really _ _ exists! _Fulgentius gently took the black gem with trembling hands, noticing that there were absolutely no marks of sculpting.

"Hey! Tikki! Have you seen it? I've_ created _ something for once!"

"And I have absolutely no idea of what was the point of it."

"But… you also made one, Sugarcube!"

Fulgentius snapped from his contemplation when he heard these strange voices, facing two little creatures the same appearance as the statuettes, just a bit bigger, floating nonchalantly over the table. 

“Look at his face!” giggled the black creature with vivid green eyes turned to him.

“Plagg, don’t be mean!” retorted the red one. “Fulgentius has been trying to prove our existence for years now!”

“I swear, if he doesn’t have a heart attack, I…”

“PLAGG!” scolded the one who seemed to be called Tikki before it - she? - turned also to him.

Fulgentius wasn’t looking at the statuettes anymore, but into Tikki’s blue eyes. They both stared at each other for an eternity - a few seconds perhaps - , then screamed hysterically while Plagg rolled on his back, laughing out loud. Tikki floated at the opposite corner of the room while Fulgentius falled on his rear, totally in shock. 

He stayed there for some minutes, waiting for his rushing heart to calm down. “By all the stars in the sky” he murmured to himself. 

He looked up at the creatures, the red one also coming back from her shock. “How is that even possible?” she asked to the one named Plagg. “Humans aren’t supposed to see us!”

“They… aren’t?” asked Fulgentius, genuinely curious now while trying to return on his feet. “Aren’t we… supposed to see magic at all?”

The two creatures looked at each other, then Plagg shrugged and decided to go explore the workshop. Fulgentius understood that it wasn’t because he wasn’t interested, but because it wasn’t his cup of tea to explain things. "We are kwamis. We are born when a new concept was brought to this world. I'm Tikki, the kwami of Creation" she introduced herself. "And the grumpy one is Plagg, kwami of Destruction" she added, pointing at the black feline creature who was rummaging around the workshop. "We are what your people could call _ magical creatures _ , or _ gods _ if you prefer." Fulgentius' eyes widened, making Tikki giggle. "I know what you are thinking and yes, we are what you were looking for since all these years."

"I can't believe it" murmured Fulgentius, extending his hand to gently touch her. They were both surprised by the contact. Tikki was warm and he felt some electric energy coming from her. Nothing to be worried about, but he could feel she wasn't even part of this world. _ Was she? _

"Not really, actually" she answered after Fulgentius asked her. "We can interact with this world, but we are from another world. We could see you and interact with what was around you, but we couldn't interact with you directly." She stopped to think for a moment. "I don't understand how any of this is even possible!"

Fulgentius turned to the two gems on the table, Tikki following his gaze. He has been able to communicate with them right after they transformed into statuettes. He held the one representing Tikki. "I've had these stones for many years, and I've been able to see you as soon as they transformed before my eyes. I've been told they were from a far away country and I felt they had something special without being able to understand what it was. Maybe this is what it needed for you and your friend to connect with our world and allow humans to finally see you?"

Tikki shrugged. “Maybe. This is at least the most reasonable explanation right now.”

They continued to discuss for hours, Fulgentius discovering by the same way that other kwamis existed, probably scattered all around the world, but he couldn’t see them for the same reason he couldn’t see Tikki and Plagg before they touched the jades. 

Fulgentius, after he almost fell into a sleep deprivation coma, noted everything he could remember and the kwamis were willing to tell him into a journal. He could then share with the Council exactly what happened and what were the kwamis with every detail he could provide. He even wrote down how Tikki and Plagg, after tasting different foods, ended up by respectively liking sweets and cheese over other things more god-like. 

After five days of intense work, he was ready.

~~~

Saewine was a shy girl.  
She was hard working, but never talked much. 

Her parents had sold her to a slave merchant when she was only a child. After years of abuse and neglect, she had been sold again, Fulgentius taking her as his assistant. Being this man’s assistant was way better than being a slave, even if she still was someone else's property. The only thing Saewine liked about her new life was the fact that she wasn’t abused anymore. She was asked to work hard and to go fetch whatever her master needed, but he was kind to her nonetheless and for this, she was ready to work even harder. When she did a good job, Fulgentius sometimes taught her some things, like reading and counting. 

However, one day, he gave her a box to carry. They were going to meet the Council. She held back from rolling her eyes, knowing the reason why they were going and how her master would end up being ridiculed again. She had faith in him, but would have prefered if he would give up this stupid quest of proving real magic and work on a new, more down to earth project. 

"You'll have to guard this box and its content at any cost" Fulgentius instructed her with a stronger voice than never before. "If something's ever to happen to this, you can be sure I'll beat you to no end." Saewine swallowed the lump forming in her throat and nodded. It was the first time her master ever threatened her. She didn't want to be beaten, but she didn't want to disappoint him either. Clenching to the box for dear life - literally - she then followed her master through the city.

On their way to the scholars quarter, Saewine was doing her best to avoid the crowds, but high class people weren't really paying attention to her and bumped into her, then glared at her like she was the one at fault.

The last person who bumped into her did it so violently that Saewine fell back, dropping the precious box. The shock let her dizzy, and she had just enough time to see the emblem on the back of the hooded figure running away, closely followed by guards. Probably a thief caught red-handed. She sighed, turning around to find the box, but suspended her move in terror. 

The box had fell opened. She retrieved the notebook and the red statuette, and replaced them in their respective compartment, but she realised there was a third compartment, and it was empty. She looked madly around her, hoping to find anything looking like the red statuette, but there was nothing, _ absolutely nothing! _

_ The thief! _

She turned to where she'd seen them running away, grabbed the box and was about to run after them, but she caught a glance at her master's back, not aware of the situation. She stopped, terrified.

If she was to go to him and explain the situation, he would beat her to death, but if she was to run after the thief, he could report her as deserting and she could be killed on sight. 

Being beaten and killed or being killed right there and then?

She tight gripped the box and ran in the same direction as the thief.

~~~

Phrixos Keijen was the usual young noble.  
He was well-mannered and classy when needed to, but a notorious roughneck and thief behind his parents’ back.  
But unlike them, he couldn’t stand slavery.

His parents were like any nobles, owning anything wealth could procure, even human lives. They couldn't care less. Even when their son acted like a brat and was forced by a guard to go back home, they bribed the guard for his silence and were done, returning to whatever they were doing before this interruption. 

Actually, Phrixos didn't care about what his parents were doing the same way they didn't care about his own doings. But he cared about anybody else, and especially his parents' slaves, and the latter knew it. He couldn't do much for them without his parents knowing or only noticing, but if they needed something for their family or they were wounded or ill, they could be sure he would help.

That's why he had started to rob wealthy people to have his own trading money. Sometimes, when a slave became too old or weak to work as his parents intended, and Phrixos knew they would soon sell them, he freed the slave and came back with something in exchange, pretending he already took care of selling them. Phrixos parents couldn’t be mad; they only took the trade to buy a new slave… and it infuriated Phrixos, but he couldn’t do anything about it.

It enraged him when he came to age and his parents started to buy concubines for him. By definition, they were his, so he could do whatever he wanted with them, right? So he started to free them right away, pretending he just didn’t like them and sold them back. After the tenth, his parents started to even buy boys for his personal use. _ Dammit… _

When he decided it was time for him to return to his shenanigans, he put on his favorite hooded short cape and jumped out of his room’s window. He quickly found himself in a crowded district, perfect place for shoplifting and pickpocketing. Usually, he could put his hand on a few stuffs before he got caught, but he was pretty unlucky today. As soon as he made a suspect move, a guard saw him red-handed and tried to stop him, but Phrixos was fast and ran away…

...Until he bumped into a girl with a box in her hands, box she dropped as soon as her rear touched the ground. He also fell back, his hand stumbling on something hard and shiny. _ That was his chance! _ He took hold of the object and returned rapidly on his feet, putting as much distance between the guard and him, and the young lady.

~~~ 

Where are they?  
_ Where are they?! _

Saewine could only look around, trying to find any trace of the thief's passage. But after hours of research, she hid in an alley, making sure she wouldn't be found, and finally took a break. She carefully opened the box, hoping to find any clue about what the third object could look like. She took the notebook and scrolled through the pages. She was glad to have learn how to read, even if her knowledge was basic. Her master had drawn two statuettes, the red one she still had in her possession, and a black one, no doubt the missing object. Saewine took the red gem in her free hand and tried to read the informations regarding it. “Tikki” she read in a whisper. 

The gem suddenly illuminated the alley in a bright pink light, blinding Saewine for a moment. When her vision came back, she discovered a red creature hovering over the statuette she still had in hand. Saewine couldn’t hold in the scream that left her lips. Dropping the statuette, she slapped her hands on her mouth to at least control the shriek the best she could. “Everything’s fine, Saewine” Tikki said with a calm voice.

But Saewine freaked out even more. “A giant talking bug!” she screeched, making Tikki giggle.

“I’m a kwami” she explained, still laughing. “Fulgentius had a similar reaction when we met the first time. I’m Tikki, kwami of Creation” she introduced herself.

Saewine calmed down, seeing that the red creature - the kwami? - seemed to be patient and gentle. She extended her hand and Tikki slowly sat on the open palm. This kind of contact was still new to the kwami, but seemed reassuring to the young human. Tikki then started to explain to the girl what she was, where she came from and how she and Plagg met Fulgentius. _ Wait… _ “Who’s Plagg?” asked Saewine, tilting her head. 

“Plagg is my other half, the kwami of Destruction. If I’m linked to the red statuette, Plagg’s linked to the black one” Tikki explained, serious worry showing in her eyes. “Haven’t you seen it?” Saewine shook her head and told Tikki how she got bumped into while holding the box and only found the notebook and Tikki’s red jade statuette after the box fell opened. “Oh no!” she exclaimed, floating around like a human would be pacing. “This is bad, really bad!” She turned to Saewine, terror showing in her big blue eyes. “Worst; this is a catastrophe!!”

> _Adrien snorted._

~~~

"This is awesome!" exclaimed Phrixos while looking at the strange statuette in his hands. He couldn't believe he had so much luck to had found this jewel in the hands of this girl. _ She never saw that coming! Well, she saw nothing at all, that's for sure! _The flawless statuette was going to fetch a high enough price to free an entire family and he couldn't be happier.

Lost in his thoughts, he jumped when he heard knocking at his bedroom's door. "Come in!" he exclaimed. At his instruction, a man in his late thirty entered, pushing a cart. "Oh! Hi, Rostoph!"

The man bowed his head in respect. "Good evening, young Master."

Phrixos got up from his chaise with a sigh, putting the statuette back on the side table. "Rostoph, how many times do I have to remind you to call me by my name when my parents aren't around?"

Rostoph chuckled nervously. "Apparently, once more. Sorry about that, Phrixos. Some habits are harder to get rid of than others!" Phrixos shook his head with a smile, then turned his attention to the cart. "I brought you your evening meal." He added, following his gaze.

Phrixos looked at Rostoph, then at the cart. It was so full of food and plates that he could eat every day of the week from the same meal. "Is the Chief crazy?! I can't eat all that!"

Phrixos turned away, heading to some storage. “You are a young man, Phrixos, and the Chief wants to make sure you’ll stay healthy!” answered Rostoph with a knowing smile while Phrixos rummaged to fetch a large basket.

The young man turned to the older one, deadpan. “I won’t be healthy, I’ll be fat!” he grumbled, making Rostoph giggle despite himself. Phrixos grinned, then put everything that was easily storable in the basket: meat, fruits, vegetables, pastries and bread, and even an amphora of wine. “Do you know where my parents are at the moment?” he asked while doing so.

“They’re out for a party at some friends’ house.” Rostoph replied. “They shouldn’t be back until late tomorrow morning.”

“Good news” exclaimed the young man, holding out the basket to his parents’ slave. “Please take your evening and bring this food with you. I’ll definitely have enough with the potage and a wedge of cheese. If anybody asks, I’ve sent you running some errands.”

The man took the basket with shaky hands. He knew the young Master was a kind man, but he just gave him a week worth of food without batting an eye. He bowed his head to hide his tears of joy. “Thank you, young Sir. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

Phrixos smiled warmly. “No problem. Have a nice evening!”

When Rostoph left, the young man turned to his meal when he realised the wedge of cheese had disappeared. He turned to the now closed door, a suspicious look on his face. He had given so much food to Rostoph; why would he feel the need to steal this simple wedge of cheese before he left? He shook his head in disbelief. No, he couldn’t; he had his hands full with the basket and Rostoph was a loyal servant to his parents. He would never steal.

He was starting to think he might have put the cheese in the basket and forgot about it when a voice came from behind him. "Oh, sweet beauty! Where have you been all my life?" Phrixos stiffed, shocked by the speech. _ Who could talk to him like that _ ** _when he was supposed to be alone in his room?! _ **He turned around to find a strange black creature floating above the side table with what was left of the cheese wedge between its paws, looking at it adoringly.

"By the Great Abysses!" he yelled, trying to put as much distance between them as possible.

The black creature turned to him, slightly annoyed. "Oh… right… I forgot you can see me now." It engulfed what was left of the cheese with delight, then sighed. "I'm Plagg, kwami of Destruction."

_ Now? Why 'now'? _Then it hit him. "You're _ Who _ , the _ what _ of _ the heck_?!" Phrixos just couldn't process the information the floating talking thing gave him. 

Plagg sighed again, deeper this time, more annoyed than ever. "I'm Plagg, kwami of Destruction" he repeated, pausing between each word for emphasis.

Seeing that the creature - Plagg - seemed harmless, Phrixos took a chance and crossed the distance separating them, now more curious than afraid. "And what is a kwami supposed to be exactly?" He asked in a defying tone. "And why did you decided to appear to me precisely?"

The cat-like kwami sat on the table, beside the black gem. "Humans would call us _ gods _ " he explained calmly. "And I _ didn't _ choose you; you brought it upon yourself" he added, looking at the statuette from the corner of his big green eyes. Phrixos understood quickly that he brought the magic creature with him when he stole the gem. _ Damn… Was it a good or a bad thing? _

"Wait, if you're a magical creature, can you grant wishes?" He asked hopefully. He didn’t need wealth - he had enough thanks to his parents - but he could use some help to stop all forms of slavery from his world.

Plagg glared at him with another annoyed look. "I do have powers, but I don't grant wishes!" He replied like the simple idea had offended him. "I can bring bad luck to anything I touch. Most of the time, it destroys it, hence the title of 'kwami of Destruction'."

Phrixos gently took the statuette in his hands. If this god-like creature was linked to this gem, and that it could bring destruction, then it surely was a powerful artifact and it shouldn’t be put in any hands, if Plagg could effectively destroy anything he touches as he claimed. An image passed through his mind and it made him chuckle nervously. "Then you're better not to touch me! I wouldn't like you to _ transform me _ into a pile of -"

He didn't have the time to finish his sentence that Plagg got forcefully absorbed inside the gem and that a bright green light washed over his body. _ What happened!? _ When Phrixos came back to his senses, mere seconds later, Plagg was gone. So was the black gem. However, he could feel something different, physically and mentally. Plagg wasn’t there anymore, but he could feel his presence in the back of his mind. Plagg wasn’t scared, but he just seemed as lost as Phrixos was. Physically, Phrixos felt stronger, faster, like all his physical capacities had been enhanced tenfold. With a quick look, he saw his clothes were different. He turned to a full length mirror and jumped at the vision of the stranger looking back at him. 

His light brown shoulder blade-long hair was replaced by jet-black knee-long one, attached into a low ponytail. On the top of his head, two strands of hair dressed upright in the airs like cowlicks, mimicking Plagg’s cat ears. His now vivid green eyes searched for his hazel ones for a moment before he realised his skin had turned darker. And that was only the physical aspects that had changed! His more modest but still fancy clothes were of different shades of black with green accents. He discovered with surprise that he now had two daggers at his waist. One silver with an engraved green paw print, the other ebony black with an illuminated paw print. At the touch of the second dagger, he could feel some energy coming from it. _ That _ must be what the gem had become. 

Phrixos took a step back, appreciating his new appearance. _ That _ will become handy! He’d now be able to rob rich people, de-transform and get away without anyone noticing. He needed a new name for this character returning his gaze in the mirror. Even if he looked quite normal, he definitely looked like a cat… well, with his size, more like the black panthers he’ve heard about... _ Pantheras! That’s a cool name!! _ Satisfied, he decided to benefit of the night to test his new abilities, jumping from the window and disappearing into the darkness.

He quickly took hold of his new capacities, and being a cat had its perks as he could now see in the dark as well as in bright daylight. He jumped from rooftops to rooftops, crossing streets from the air like he would with a waterstream. He was strong, fast and really hard to see, but he could see everyone from above. 

A young woman suddenly caught his attention. Phrixos - now Pantheras - could swear he saw her somewhere, then he recognized her as the girl he bumped into earlier that day, the one he stole the magical gem from. He grinned. Since she still had this box with her, she probably had other magical gems like his! He couldn't bare the idea to trade the gem he already had now that he knew what it was capable of, but he wouldn't mind trading the others to free as many slaves as he could!

But then, Pantheras realised he should stay quiet about his new powers. After all, if that girl discovered he was using the magic powers of the statuette, she could easily transform herself and kick his butt. They were hers in the first place; surely she knew better how to use them!

He dropped in an alleyway and made sure no one saw him. His appearance was a little catchy, but not out of the ordinary, so he could perfectly act like a normal person if he made sure to not use his powers. _ Wow! He already was thinking like he had become a demi-god of some sort! Well, he kind of was… _

He silently approached her from behind, his cat senses making him stealthier. He smirked. "What brings a young lady in these streets at this time of the night?" He asked with a suave tone. If the girl jumped in surprise, that'd be an understatement. For a moment, Pantheras thought for sure her heart had stopped and only the shock kept her upright. At this sight, he smiled, amused, but the girl bowed her head and started to shake.

"Please" she murmured with a trembling voice. "Please let me go." Pantheras looked at her, a range of emotions passing through his eyes - a good thing she was still turning her back to him. "I just want to find the thief who stole what belongs to my master and I promise I'll go back to him, so please, let me go" she begged in a so small voice that Pantheras almost missed her pleadings. 

He made a step backwards in terror. _ An idiot! He was a complete _ _ idiot__! _ He was so happy about his findings that he never imagined that the girl was in fact a slave. She probably didn't even _ know _what she was carrying in the wooden box! Now, she was in trouble because of him, because of his selfishness. Now, what could he do? De-transform and give her back the gem, hoping she'll be okay with her master? Ask her to forgive his sorry ass? No. He decided instead to do the second stupidest thing his dumbass brain could think about, and played along.

He reached for her, putting his hand delicately on her shoulder. "Don't misjudge my intentions, Princess, I was only a gentleman checking on a lonely lady. I mean you no harm, I promise." She sighed, no doubt reassured by the stranger's words, then turned around to face him, averting her eyes. She was still afraid, he could tell, but she looked calmer. He let go of her shoulder when she turned around, but he reached for her hand this time. "Would you let this strange guy help you find this thief as a mean to seek for your forgiveness for the heart attack he almost gave you?" He asked with a mischievous grin. A shy smile appeared on the girl’s face and she nodded, slowly taking his hand. Hers was strangely muscular and even if the skin on the back seemed soft, faded scars all over it, the palm skin was rough with years of manual labour. Pantheras wanted to kick himself. _ How could he mistake her with someone from the upper class?! _ “You’re pretty well dressed for a… for a servant” he commented after a moment of silence, searching for the right words. He didn’t want to offend her by assuming. 

She clenched the wooden box to her chest with her free hand, still avoiding to look directly at him. “Master and I were going to meet with the Council” she answered with a whisper as if speaking louder would make him go away. “He didn’t want me to present myself in my usual rags, so he bought the prettiest dress he could afford that wouldn’t be inappropriate for his ‘assistant’.”

Pantheras turned to her, curious. “That’s what you are? His assistant?” She laughed, but stopped quickly and turned to him in horror to only find a genuine smile on his face. He immediately understood her reaction and only smiled wider. “I’m not a guard or your master. You can speak freely with me, so don’t worry about your answers, okay? I won’t judge or menace you to keep your words in check.” He slowly brought her hand to his lips and gently kissed the knuckles, an amused smile on his lips, but he could see the panic rising in her eyes and immediately stopped. She definitely was uncomfortable with the gesture and he could only imagine what she had been through before. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cross any boundaries” he assured, letting go of her hand. “I just want you to feel free again… if you’re not already, ‘Assistant’.”

She brought her hand back to her like she burned herself, looking at him from the corner of her eyes. “My parents sold me when I was six” she said with her small voice. “I’ve never known what freedom was like. When I became old enough to be... _ interesting _ , my previous master started to order me to do… other... _ things _ for him.” Pantheras looked at her in horror, disgusted not by her, but by what she had gone through, but she seemed like she wasn’t done yet and he let her continue. He felt like it was the first time she could express herself to someone willing enough to listen. “They eventually got bored, and they sold me to my current master. He calls me his ‘assistant’, but I still belong to him. He’s just kinder to me than my previous masters, but I’m not free either.” She lowered her eyes to the box she was clenching with both hands now. “He menaced me to beat me to death if anything happened to what was in this box, but someone bumped into me earlier and I dropped it. When I retrieved the box, it was opened and I realised there was something missing inside. I’ve never been able to find it, so I assume it got stolen by the person who bumped into me.” 

They stopped walking so Pantheras could face her properly. “Do you have any clue on the person who robbed you?” He tried to keep an even voice, but he was scared she would be able to trace him back. “Have you seen anything, or are you - that is, are _ we _ searching blindly?”

She looked up at him, a grateful little smile on her face, then she shook her head. “I’ve never seen their face. All I’ve seen is an emblem on their hooded cape. Right now, I’m looking for this emblem. Either it is a family crest, or a guild recognition symbol. That’s my only clue…” Pantheras sighed in relief, but her young partner might have considered it as a discouraged gesture as she laughed softly. “You were the one proposing your help! Now, deal with it!” He looked at her in awe, hearing her teasing tone for the first time. Even she seemed surprised by her boldness, but she also seemed to remember his words and looked at him in the eyes for the first time. She looked tired, not only physically, but emotionally. Life had never been tender to her and Pantheras just added to her misery… well, _ Phrixos _did. After all, for her, even if she didn’t know Phrixos was the thief she was looking for, he wasn’t the one walking the streets at night to find him with near to no clues. 

Pantheras chuckled softly, then nodded, even if they were searching for nothing - since _ he _ was the one she was looking for, and the emblem she remembered wasn’t even atlantean. One of his parents’ servant was from the continent and, as a thanks for his help, gifted him the hooded cape. Even if they searched for years, they’d find nothing, and no one who would know about this emblem since the aforementioned slave died some years ago. 

They continued walking, filling the moments of silence with small talk, until the sun start rising at the horizon. They shared a worried glance. If the streets weren’t safe at night for a young lady, they certainly weren’t safer for a deserting slave during the day. They both knew it. However, Pantheras couldn’t bring the young lady to his house for her safety without risking his identity and questions from his parents when they’d be back. He guided her between two houses and made sure to hide her the best he could. “You should stay hidden and get some rest” he suggested softly, visibly growing fonder of her. “I’ll search for you tomorrow and help you again with your researches. Until then, please stay safe, okay?”

She nodded, rising the cover he’d find for her over her head. “I’ll do my best.” He smiled softly, ready to leave when she delicately grabbed his wrist. “Thank you for your help,...”

“Pantheras. You can call me Pantheras” he answered, his smile widening. 

“Thank you, sir Pantheras” she completed, lowering her head, not in submission, but in gratitude.

“You’re welcome, Princess…”

“Saewine, please…”

Pantheras huffed, then nodded. “Princess Saewine. I’ll see you tomorrow then.” And with that, he left the alleyway and disappeared. 

> _Marinette nudged Adrien with a smirk. The ‘princess’ nickname seemed to be a natural habit for the Black Cat Chosen. He shrugged with a Cheshire grin._

~~~

“Saewine, are you okay?” Tikki asked softly when she was sure Pantheras was gone.

She nodded before she yawned loudly. “I’m fine, I just need some rest” she assured, holding the wooden box to her chest like it was a pillow. She rested her chin on the box, and lost herself in her memories. Pantheras was so kind and gentle and funny. She felt safe with him, even if she just met him. He was the first person who treated her like a human being. She felt like, if she could choose, she’d definitely ask him to be his servant. _ Wait… _ He wanted her to feel _ free _, not to hope for a better master! She giggle to herself, then sighed softly. She really liked this young man.

Tikki looked at her, slightly worried. “You’re sure you’re okay? You look redder. Do you feel sick? I know humans can feel sick, but I don’t know what to do! You seem like you are too warm. Are you… what do you call it… are you feverish?”

Saewine jumped at Tikki’s comments, then realised she was highly blushing. “I’m fine, Tikki, I swear. It’s just that… I was thinking about Pantheras…” Tikki tilted her head in confusion. “I… think I’m in love with him…” Just to admit it aloud made her blush deepening. Tikki looked at her, probably studying her human friend, then nodded, registering the new information. Saewine adjusted the cover over her head to make sure she was properly hidden, then let her eyes close, Tikki resting in the crook of her neck.

She got jacked up by strong arms some hours later. These men weren’t guards, but they weren’t slave merchants either. She yelped at the sudden move, but didn’t even had time to cry for help before they pushed her in a closed wooden carriage. In shock, Saewine crawled into a corner, trying to regain her senses. Everything went so fast that she just couldn’t process what’d happened. The carriage moved mere seconds later. 

It was just big enough to enclose one, maybe two people inside, but it made it light and fast. In panic, Saewine digged her nails in the planks surrounding her when it started to move. It was dim inside, light passing through the cracks between the planks, but she could feel the said planks were too thick for people outside to hear her screaming. Anyway, people wouldn’t help her, she thought after she had registered her situation. People didn’t care. She had been caught in an upper class district, where if you didn’t have money, you didn’t deserve to be saved.

Saewine brought her knees to her chest, tears filling at the corners of her eyes. There she was again, on the verge of being sold once more to who knows who. Or were they going to bring her to execute her on the public place as a warning for other runaway slaves? And what about Pantheras? He told her he would search for her at night. If he couldn't find her, would he guess something happened to her, or would he just abandon and carry on with his life like she had never been part of it? She sobbed at the thought, failing to feel Tikki's little paw patting her cheek. She gave in her despair, crying softly. 

When she later acknowledged Tikki's presence, the latter disappeared through the crate, then came back as if nothing could hold her. "We are leaving the city" she declared matter-of-factly, but she stopped to look at Saewine's amazed gaze.

"How… can you do that!?" She asked bewildered.

The kwami tilted her head, then understood what the young human was talking about. "Oh! Remember what I told you? Kwamis aren't from this world. We can phase through things as we please."

Saewine searched for the box and opened it, reaching for Tikki's statuette. Kwamis were amazing creatures. Too bad she only was human. "I wish you could _ transform me _into one of-" She got cut in her sentence by Tikki yelping in surprise while she was absorbed into the gem, the crate suddenly enlighten by a bright pink light. Energy washed over Saewine's body at dizzying speed. She needed a few seconds to get her bearings back together. " -of your kind." She finished to herself, noticing Tikki's absence. 

She looked at her hands, the statuette being also gone. She couldn't see better, but she did notice some changes into her clothing and her appearance. Even if she didn't have a mirror to look at herself, she could see her hair was longer, redder with strands of black, her pale skin was darker, but the dim light prevented her to see what it actually looked like. Her dress had turned into some practical clothes, looking like the heroes she'd read about in her master's books at the time she was learning how to read. She could feel some padding around her torso, her arms and legs, and something grasping her right wrist. She felt protected, but she also felt stronger, like she could… 

She punched into the side of the crate and, even if she didn't break it, she certainly damaged it enough to create a few cracks. _ Wow! _

Of course, it attracted her kidnappers' attention. They promptly came to a stop to check on her, but just as they were to open the crate, Saewine bursted out of it like it had exploded. She took this opportunity to look around and to run away while the men were still processing what had happened. She was in a forest, and jumped from tree to tree with an incredible easiness. 

Adrenaline started to run low after a few minutes, and she took a moment to analyze where she was and where she was going. She couldn't hear the men anymore, which was a good sign. Seawine decided to stay on the branch she had stopped on to take her breath. As she'd guessed, her skin was another hue, looking pinker, but still being normal, and her clothes were actually black with red accents, the padding being red. On her wrist was a giant metallic red insect with black spots, a silver chain coming from it surrounding her arm up to her shoulder. She thought with a smile that she could look like a human version of Tikki, the ladybug on her wrist adding to the feeling. She sighed, located herself and jumped off the tree, returning to the city with a renewed strength and confidence.

~~~

Pantheras was pacing in his room, trying to figure out how to change back. His parents were about to be back soon and he still had the appearance of a stranger. What had first happened for him to transform? He replayed his conversation with Plagg in his head, reenacting the scene. Then, it hitted him. He said to Plagg that he’d better not to touch him if he wouldn’t like to transform him into a pile of ashes. '_ Transform me'. _ That probably was the command line. "Plagg, transform me?" He demanded, more like a question than as an order, but nothing happened. Was he making it wrong? But it made sense, right? Plagg transformed him when he asked; he should transform him again at his demand, no? He could sense Plagg's presence, also thinking about a solution to their predicament. And what about asking for the opposite? "Try to... _ de-transform _ me then?" A bright green light washed over his body and he turned back as himself, the gem in his hand and Plagg materialising beside him. The human and the kwami shared a stunned glance, then grinned like madmen, laughing uncontrollably. _ That was so much fun! Who knew they could fuse into a single being?! _

"Remember, I’m the kwami of Destruction” said Plagg with a smirk. “I have the power of Bad Luck. Another time, we’ll try a few things. Until then, let me have some of this wonderful cheese; I’m _ starving_!”

Phrixos laughed heartily and went to the 'cooking place', Plagg hiding in his sleeve. He made sure Plagg received all the cheese he needed and wanted, then returned to his room where he crashed in his bed, exhausted from his night. For his parents as for the servants, seeing him asleep until the sun was already high in the sky wasn’t out of character. 

After their cat-nap (“_pfft! Cat-nap!” *smack!* “Shut up, Kitty…” _ ), Phrixos and Plagg - mostly Phrixos - decided to go out to the marketplace. The young man wanted to check on the slave selling booths to see what was there to be saved and, he was surprised by the thought, to make sure Saewine wasn’t part of them. He smiled despite himself. He liked the girl. She was sweet and definitely needed his help. He then frowned. _ He _ was the cause of her predicament… well, of most of it. He sighed, trying to change his state of mind once he was arrived. 

And Gods, there were so many! 

He took a look at the “merchandise”, acting like a potential buyer - which he kind of was -, but he mostly tried to figure out how he could find all the money needed to free them all. He wouldn’t have another choice than prioritizing those who would have a better chance in life. After a moment, he was reassured to see that Saewine wasn’t part of them. He could only guess that she was still safe, asleep in the alley he’d left her that morning. Not long after, he sighed desperately. He wished he could do more for all these people than buy their freedom. 

Something suddenly caught his attention, some movement out of the corner of the eyes. A young woman, dressed in some red and black light armor, was trying to get pass the crowd to go as near as possible to one of the slave selling booth. _ What were her intentions? Propose the best price possible for his stock? Murder the merchant? Did they know each other? Was she his lover? _

He watched in awe as she swung a huge red and black-spotted war hammer to the booth.

~~~

Saewine finally arrived in the city, more exhausted than ever, but she felt free, she _ was _ free, and that kept a smile on her face. While making her way back to the alley where she had got caught some hours ago, so Pantheras could find her - and she needed some sleep anyway, she arrived in the marketplace where multiple selling booths were standing side by side, people looking at the merchandise available to them, coming from the borders of the island as from foreign countries, but most of these booths were selling slaves. From children the age her own parents sold her to elders barely strong enough to clean the dishes, there were so many captives that Saewine felt shaky. _ How could they play with people lifes so easily!? _She just came from being kidnapped, after all...

_ I need something… Something to make them understand that this can’t keep going on anymore! _ She looked around her, but nothing came to mind. Maybe she could find something closer to the booth? She weaved into the crowd, making her way as she could, her mind rushing. _ I need to find a plan, and I need one fast! I’d be lucky to just find an idea, a trinket, a weapon, a... _ A word popped in the back of her mind. _ A ‘lucky charm’. _ As soon as she whispered the words, the ladybug on her wrist opened its wings and started to glow a pink light, then a giant red and black war hammer materialized in her hand. She got scared at first, but as soon as she realised what was going on, she smiled. She thought she’d be unable to just lift it from the ground, but she remembered she was stronger and the heavy weapon was just as light as a broom. If she could chase pests with a broom, she could probably make some damages with a war hammer!

She swung her new weapon to the structure of the booth, making it collapse like a house of cards. It crumbled so easily that people started screaming in fear, but that didn't stop Saewine. With a renewed strength, and guards gathering around her, she swung again, breaking some bones and teeth, but she tried to contain the casualties to the enemies' weapons and armors. 

Once she was satisfied with the number of booths she had destroyed, the number of slaves who had run away and the number of guards she had defeated, she decided it was time to disappear. She ran through the crowd and turned in an alleyway, oblivious of the young man who had watched her conquer her foes with a lovestruck gaze.

> “_Makes me remember of how I fell head over heels for you, My Lady!”_

Saewine ran as fast as her new powers allowed her until the pink light washed over her body, returning her normal appearance in a flash. Tikki also came back to existence, floating tiredly in Saewine’s hands. “Tikki!” Saewine exclaimed softly. “Are you alright? What happened?” But before the kwami could answer, some noise coming from people - probably guards looking for her alter-ego - caught her attention, pressing her to go hide and wait for Pantheras. After all, night was coming soon, and she was still a runaway slave. She needed to rest, and Tikki to give her some explanations. 

As soon as the human and the kwami were hidden again - she chose another alley after all, in case the men who caught her would be back-, Saewine held Tikki in front of her, pressing the little goddess with answers. “I don’t know exactly what happened” Tikki said with a tired voice, a grumble suddenly coming from her tiny belly. Saewine’s stomach answered Tikki’s with a grumble of its own. They looked at each other with a defeated smile, knowing they wouldn’t be able to eat before night… if they were even able to find anything to eat first. They sighed. “All I know is that, after you said ‘_ transform me _’, I felt the urge to fuse with the gem” continued Tikki. “For cycles, kwamis have wondered their goal in life, why they’d been created, how they’ve come to be. What happened today is maybe, probably, the answer we’ve been waiting for.”

Saewine frowned in confusion. “You mean that kwamis and humans have been destined to work together by becoming… one?” asked Saewine. “Aren’t magical powers dangerous if they end up in the wrong hands?” Tikki nodded slowly. “What would have happened if Master had discovered these powers? What could happen if one used your powers and… what was is name? Pagg?”

“Plagg”, corrected Tikki before she frowned. “If Fulgentius had used my powers and Plagg’s at the same time, the world would have probably collapsed on itself…”

Saewine contained a surprised gasp. “You’re kidding, right?” But Tikki only shook her head. 

“Plagg and I were born when the universe have been created” she explained. “This is a very big thing your people isn’t ready to understand yet, but there was a big explosion, and the sky became sparkled with stars. Plagg is Chaos and Destruction; I’m Order and Creation. If one used our powers combined, they could destroy the universe as it is and create their own, because this enormous ‘creation in an explosion’, what created us, is the actual source of our powers.”

“That makes your magic terribly powerful” commented Saewine in a murmur, more for herself than for Tikki, but the kwami nodded nonetheless. “But when I used your powers, I didn’t feel like I could create a new world… Why’s that?”

Tikki stopped to think for a moment. “Maybe because you’re a human, and thanks to that, my powers are more controlled, like they’re muted in a way. I had to minimize my energy to make sure you wouldn’t get hurt by it, but it feels like… uh… like you trying to retain an heavy load from falling. I was trying to do some damage control, but this is exhausting and I can’t keep you transformed for long after you used the ‘lucky charm’, and now, I’m starving…”

Saewine’s shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry about that…”

Tikki made her a sympathetic smile. “Don’t blame yourself, Saewine. We’ll figure out something, I’m sure of it.” The young woman returned the goddess’ smile before she dropped her head against the wall she was hiding beside and quickly fell asleep, her new friend following not long after.

~~~

Pantheras arrived a few hours later, a large smile on his face. This woman in red was so impressive! He just had to talk to Saewine about her! When he arrived in the alley he left her the day before, his blood ran cold. The alley was empty and there were traces of fight. Was Saewine okay? He frantically started to look for her all around the district, his night vision proving useful in the diming sunlight. “Sir Pantheras?” a soft voice suddenly called for him. 

He turned around to see Saewine standing in front of him, a tired smile answering his sigh of relief. “Are you alright?” he asked her in a worried tone after noticing her torn dress and her messy hair. “What happened?”

She then proceeded to retale how she got abducted by head-hunters to be resold far from the city, but when she got to the point where she transformed herself into a magical warrior, she preferred to just go with the fact that the men got distracted when they let her out of the crate and she managed to run away. Deep down, she was proud of the woman she was with her magical powers, but didn’t want Pantheras to think down of her if he ever knew this warrior was in fact a worthless slave. That is, if he had heard about her in the first place.

After Saewine’s summary, Pantheras felt so bad for her that he completely forgot about the warrior in red. He hid her again in an alleyway and asked her to wait a moment for him. She gladly obeyed, trusting him completely. When he returned a few minutes later - journeying in a straight line was easier when you could jump on rooftops -, he had with him a new dress, prettier than what she was wearing, and some food, asking her to forgive him for forgetting about bringing the latter. She was so grateful that she couldn’t bring herself to be mad at him. She ate with appetite, remembering to keep some food for Tikki, pretending to keep a snack for later when he couldn’t be around her anymore, and with that, they started their researches for the thief until sunrise when they split up again, Saewine hiding and Pantheras returning home.

However, the young man couldn't bring himself to sleep peacefully this time. He wanted to find the red warrior and, if possible, propose his help. Of course, he wouldn't be able to do as good as she did last time, but if he could assist her, he'd do whatever he could with pleasure. With that in mind, Phrixos slept one hour or two and returned to the market district. While Plagg was hiding in his sleeve, munching on some cheese - _ how could it be his prefered food of all what humankind could offer?! _ \- the young man posted himself in a corner, observing people passing by. He could hear them talking about the events of the day before, and he discovered some consistency. For the authorities and high class people, she was the Bloody Warrior, though he also heard some less graceful names, and for servants and lower class people, she was the Scarlet Lady, a red deity coming for heaven. He definitely prefered the last one. 

About an hour later, she finally appeared, analysing her surroundings and visibly establishing a plan. This was the opportunity. “Excuse me?” he asked softly when he arrived at hearshot distance. He waited to have her full attention before he added “Please, let me help you.”

She looked at him from head to toes, then she made a disgusted face. “How do you think you can help?” She definitely wasn’t impressed, and she was kind of right. How could he even compare his capacities to hers?

“I can buy slaves, so I can free them” he offered desperately. “Or I can buy weapons and armor for you to do so!” Being rich had its perks, after all. 

Her reaction was far from what he’d expected. “Typical from wealthy people” she scoffed. To his confused face, she understood that she needed to clarify. “You think that money can solve all problems. You buy slaves to free them? What about the merchants? You encourage them to continue, to buy abducted kids from headhunters, to continue the cycle!” His blood ran cold. “You think you’re helping when you buy slaves, even to free them? Let me laugh! You’re helping yourself to sleep at night, that’s all!” She was furious, disgusted, but Phrixos realised how right she was. Giving his parents’ slaves money and food was far more helping than paying the merchant to buy and free them. 

He lowered his head in defeat. “You’re right, My Lady… I’m sorry for bothering you.” He looked at her with all the love he could feel under his self-depreciation. “Please, be careful. I may not be able to help, but I’m all heart with you and your goals.” The Scarlet Lady looked at him, surprised this time. “Not every wealthy person agrees with slavery” he added with a shy smile before turning his back and getting away, leaving a remorseful Saewine behind. 

_ Of course _ , not everyone agreed with slavery. After all, Pantheras was a kind man and had a good amount of money judging by the dress he brought her. Maybe this noble wasn’t that bad after all. She tried to track him back in the crowd, hoping to apologize, but as soon as she spotted him, he slipped the hood of his cape on, revealing the crest she’s been looking for for a few days now. _ This son of a…! _ This time, Saewine was seeing red. _ This guy _ had the nerves to offer help against slavery when he was the one putting a slave, _ her _, into trouble! She forced her way through the crowd, but it was too late. She swore to herself she’d make him pay as soon as she could get a hold on him. 

“Well… It sure didn’t go as planned!” giggled Plagg from his hiding place. Phrixos grumbled under his breath, making Plagg cackle louder. Irritated, the young man shook his arm vigorously, like trying to chase an insect from his face. “Hey!” shouted the kwami. “Don’t take it on me!”

“Then stop being a pain” warned Phrixos before he sighed. This really was a bad first impression! He’d have to take note that money and promesses didn’t work with her. He watched her from a distance destroying slave selling booths once again, this time with a giant red and black morning star… No, she really didn’t need Phrixos’s help…

He turned his gaze to Plagg. Maybe not Phrixos’s, but maybe Pantheras’s?

But as soon as he was about to transform, the Scarlet Lady had disappeared, leaving a proper carnage behind.

~~~

“What do you think of this Red Lady?” asked Saewine while sipping on the tea Pantheras had provided her, finishing their midnight lunch.

His eyes were unfocused as he thought back to his meeting with said Lady. “She’s impressive, absolutely amazing!” His lovestruck gaze didn’t escape Saewine, and for a moment, she regretted asking. He definitely loved her alter-ego more than he could love slave-her. “I wish I could help her…”

She turned to him. _ This was her chance! _ If she could have him in her life, even if it was secretly by the mean of her warrior self, she should take it! “I saw her today, and even if she didn’t seem like it, I think she’d struggled with the guards before she could escape.” She paused. “Can you fight? If you want to help, maybe you could trace an escape route for her?”

_ By fighting! _ Since he returned home, Phrixos had asked himself what he could do to help. Money could do nothing, but giving her the possibility to run, to disappear once she was done, was probably the best way to do so! But since Phrixos did a really bad first impression to her, the best way to show the Scarlet Lady his appreciation would be to make a new first impression… Pantheras had a rendezvous with the Red Warrior the next day. “I’ll do my best!” he promised. “I’m more of a rogue than a warrior, though…” Saewine took at his outfit and giggled, agreeing with him.

They started walking again, avoiding any guard they could meet. “Oh! I’ve found something about the thief today!” notified Saewine with an excited smile. 

Pantheras choked on the lump suddenly forming in his throat. “You found them?”

She sighed. “Kind of. I saw him walking in the crowd, but I lost him too quickly. The only thing I know is that this is a young man, probably a noble by the look of his clothes…” She frowned, anger showing in her eyes. “I can’t believe this guy, a rich man, stole something from a _ slave_!”

Pantheras averted his eyes, fidgeting. “Maybe he didn’t know you were a slave?” Saewine snapped her head to him. “I mean… The way you were dressed when we met, you didn’t look like a servant to me, even less now with this dress I gave you…” She lowered her gaze to said dress. “If you could talk to him, maybe he’d give the gem back to you? Maybe he’d regret putting you into trouble with your master?”

Saewine couldn’t retain the scoff. “As if…” To Pantheras’s sheepish glance, she added “The richer the master, the less understanding.” He looked at her, a mix of terror and remorse passing through his vivid green eyes. “‘You stole an apple to feed your famishing kid? I’ll just buy a new slave to do your job and you can die starving, I don’t care!’” she interpreted with a hautain tone. “Middle class masters are more gentle and understanding” she concluded in a envying voice. “This guy was a really rich person, I’m sure of it… I don’t think he’d even consider speaking to me in the first place.”

He lowered his head and averted his gaze again. Since he told Saewine to express herself freely with him, he’d learn more about slaves’ lifestyle in the few nights they’ve spent together than during his whole lifetime. He also learned that, if rich people had preconceived ideas about what a slave should look and act like, slaves had preconceived ideas about what wealthy people should look and act like too. He couldn’t blame her for that, after all. His parents’ servants were happy for his help, but he realised that helping them having a better life was more efficient than freeing them. They could get caught again by headhunters who’d sell them to slave merchants and the cycle would just start again. Being a slave on the atlantean island sure wasn’t a walk in the park... 

In the morning, when Pantheras and Saewine split up for the day, the young man waited on a roof for the Scarlet Lady. As hoped, she appeared about an hour later, but the guards were also waiting for her and tried to stop her. What they didn't expect was his intervention. He jumped off the roof and prowled through the crowd. Plagg had told him about a power he had he called _ Cataclysm _. It was supposed to bring bad luck to whatever he touched, although most of the times, it just destroyed things. He wouldn't try that on guards - they were also people only doing their job after all - but he'd try to use it to block their way to them, or only to her if he didn't succeed as planned. He'd just have to find an excuse to explain said power, but if he played his cards correctly, he wouldn't have to.

He waited at the corner of a shop for the Lady to do her business, crashing an impressive red and black double war axe into different booths. But this time, guards were ready for her. And this time, she had an ally, or at least he wished she would see him as such. While making his way, he knocked out all the guards who crossed his path with surprising easiness. He grinned, happy to not have to use his power on them after all. 

He crouched in a defensive stance, holding up his daggers curved like cat fangs in front of him, but before the guard hit him with his sword, Pantheras felt a move behind him. Thinking it was another guard, he turned to the attacker, finding the Scarlet Lady ready to swing her battle axe at him. "Wait!" He shouted. "I'm on your-"

"Stay down!" She cut, hitting the guard with her massive weapon. To his bewildered glance, she stretch her hand to him, helping him up. "Thanks for the support, Sir!" She said with a smile, slightly panting.

"My pleasure, Milady" he answered with an exaggerated bow and a shit-eating grin. He did it. He made a good impression to her. Too bad it was with his alter-ego, but he'll have to deal with it later.

Once satisfied with the destruction they had caused, either to the selling booths or to guards, she grabbed the young man by the hand and guided him to an alley. Pantheras recognized the sector and knew the route they'll be taking. Without hesitation, he whispered softly and dark energy surrounded his black dagger. He then stabbed a column supporting the roof of a building. The column darkened, cracked and crumbled in a pile of rumbles. Pleasantly shocked, but knowing the guards couldn't follow them now, they exchanged a grin and continue running. 

After just a few minutes, the Lady stopped, looking at her ladybug on her wrist like one would look at their watch nowadays. "Thanks for the help, but we'll have to split up here and now." She made a respectful salute and turned her back to Pantheras, but he held her with a hand on her shoulder. 

"Wait!" He pled. "What's your name? Scarlet Lady is cute, and Blood Warrior is fierce, but how do I call you?"

She averted her gaze. What should she be called? She looked at the ladybug on her wrist, then remembered how Pantheras had said that 'Scarlet Lady was cute'. She slightly blushed at the thought. She realised the ladybug had only two spots remaining, a warning Tikki had set with her to tell her she was getting exhausted. She had to think fast, but couldn't disappoint the love of her life. "Coccinae" she came up with before she softly grab Pantheras's hand off her shoulder. "Thanks again for the help, but I really need to go." She walked backwards, keeping eye contact with him. "See you around!" She called before throwing the ladybug in the air like a grappling hook, pulling her to the rooftops to swiftly disappear.

~~~

From this day, Pantheras got busier than ever. He walked the streets with Saewine all night long, then fought with Coccinae in the morning to finally go crashing in his bed around noon. It was exhausting, but it was cool and he was happy. The only thing that got him to cringe about his life was the fact that Coccinae didn’t like his civilian self too much. Each times he tried to talk to her, she got furious and tried to dismember him. What did he do to her to deserve such treatment? 

Pantheras’s alliance with the Scarlet Lady spread like powder in the city and soon, he got on the guards’ blacklist right beside Coccinae. Helping Saewine at night was getting more dangerous for both of them and Pantheras quickly had to minimize his visits rate. He never failed to bring her food and warm clothes when needed, but staying with Saewine could make her pass as an accomplice and put her in even more trouble than by being a runaway slave. 

> “_How did they get to know each other?” asked Marinette, taking a lovestruck look at her husband.  
__“We’re getting there” assured Tikki with a knowing smile._

Coccinae and Pantheras had become the power couple of Atlantis. To the folks, Pantheras was visibly enamored with the Scarlet Lady, and the later never failed to return his flirts with some of her own. Even if she was more discreet about them, one could say without a doubt that Coccinae had really strong feelings for her dark and sneaky partner. 

These feelings also showed on Saewine’s features and, when he could accompany her, Pantheras couldn’t ignore them. “Is everything all right?” he asked, worried. To this, she could only manage to blush, avert her eyes and nod vigorously. 

One morning however, things turned badly for the young, secret heroine. As soon as Pantheras was gone and she was about to transform to do some wreak, a man of high stature and prestance stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. She felt her blood running cold, certain to have been caught by a guard. The man was tall, slim, with long platinum hair and clothes made of rare fabrics. His hazel eyes looked at her from head to toes, and his lips turned upward into a predatory smile. “What are you doing here, young girl, all alone by yourself?” he asked in a sweet tone Saewine recognise too well. It was _ the _ tone, the one that haunted her nightmares and turned her stomach. She looked around in panic. She had to find a way out, whatever, however, but she had nothing and noone to help her. She felt tears forming at the corners of her eyes, knowing she’d be unable to escape whatever was coming.

“Father? What are you doing?” said a strangely familiar voice from behind her. When she turned around, she saw the young noble who she suspected had stolen the black gem coming beside her. _ This son of a… _ She quickly turned her gaze to the older man. _ He’d called this man ‘Father’, right? _ If the situation wasn’t a life-threatening one and she wasn’t about to have a panic attack, she would have scoffed. _ He _ _ really _ _ was a son of a… _ “Could you please leave my new concubine be?” _ Concubine? _**_Concubine?! _ ** _ He had some nerves! _

“Oh!” the man exclaimed with surprise and disappointment. “I didn’t know you finally bought one, Phrixos. It was about time!” _ What does he mean ‘about time’? Was he supposed to have one long before? _ Saewine lowered her head in confusion.

She felt the young man - Phrixos, was it? - come closer, but placing himself in a defensive way. “I know. It took me time to find the right one, but here she is, so please, don’t try to touch her. She’s mine, and only mine.” Saewine felt like the human-object she was used to be, but for once, she felt safe behind this young man. He was trying to protect her, and she felt guilty for a moment, but also, so confused. What did he have in mind? Her eyes still on the ground, she didn’t see him getting even closer. “Follow my lead, Princess” he whispered to her ear. _ Princess!? What!? _ “Did you do what I asked you to?” he then said with an autoritary tone. “I’ve sent you to run some errands; I sure hope you took care of them all!”

_ Errands? Which errands? _ Then it hit her. _ ‘Follow my lead.’ _ “Yes, Master” she answered in a small voice, easily back to her servant mode. “Everything has been done as you requested.”

He smiled proudly, then got closer to her. “Good… It means you deserve a reward” he said in a loud enough tone to be heard by his father, but a flirtatious enough one to give her goosebump. _ Nope! Nope-nope-nope! This guy really was the son of his father! _

~~~

“This room will be yours for now on” Phrixos said while guiding Saewine through the house, making sure to be heard accordingly from any other person who could be eavesdropping. “My room is at the end of the hall. Come join me in an hour” he added with an unanswerable tone. She nodded and entered the room. She looked around in amazement. The bedroom was large and cozy, with everything she could need. She searched for new clothes, found a simple but exquisite dress, then took a warm bath. She felt the weight of the last days wash away like the dirt covering her. Even Tikki took some time in the warm water. 

After a relaxing moment, the girl and her kwami took some time to eat. "Eat all you need, Tikki" advised Saewine. "I don't know what's going on and I want to make sure you're strong enough to change me and allow me to escape from whatever this Phrixos has in mind."

Tikki nodded. "If what I think is actually happening, you shouldn't worry too much." She added before she took a gigantic bite in a pastry. Saewine looked at her, confused, but continued feasting. With a sigh, she then proceeded to do some makeup and to do her hair so she’d look presentable. She learned with her previous masters that it was safer to present yourself properly when you were asked to a master’s bedroom. She didn’t know Phrixos, and even if he seemed to be protective of her, she didn’t know what he wanted from her. Officially, she didn’t belong to him, so maybe she could protect herself with that statement?

Satisfied with her general look, she asked Tikki to hide in her garment, took the gem in her hand and got to Phrixos’s bedroom. 

The young man was pacing since he left Saewine to her room. At first, Plagg got worried, but he quickly lost interest and returned to his wheel of cheese. Phrixos didn’t know how to tell Saewine the truth, but he’d eventually had to. A knock to the door brought him back to reality. One hour had already passed?! “Come in” he shouted in a higher pitch than usual, making Plagg giggle while hiding. When she entered, Phrixos looked at her, gaping, like he was seeing her for the first time. She was beautiful, absolutely astonishing. If he didn't know better, he'd take her for one of his parents' friends. The only thing distinguishing her from an higher class person was her head hanging low and her stature she was keeping as small as possible. 

He approached her slowly, afraid to scare her like a wild animal. "Saewine?" He called softly, extending his hand to take hers by just the fingers. He'd learned that she was uncomfortable by fully taking hands, but just taking her fingertips let her the possibility to easily free her hand or keep the comfort of his presence by her side. "Please, Princess, come sit with me…"

This was what made her look at him in the eyes for the first time. He definitely knew who she was, and he called her 'princess'. No doubt now. "Pantheras?" She asked in bewilderment. His smile remained soft, but was now mixed with shame and nervousness. He nodded slowly, then guided her to sit in a chaise lounge. On the small table beside it sat the black gem she was looking for. Things were starting to make sense, and others were getting even more confusing. He sat beside her, lowering his head. She could tell he dreaded for her questions, her reactions, maybe even her judgement. "I have so many _ why’s _ that I don't even know where to start…" She took a look at Phrixos fidgeting. She smiled, a little surprised. He felt to her like he was about to be lectured by his mother. Had he ever been disciplined before? "Why did you help me to search for… you?"

He looked at her from the corner of his eyes, too ashamed to look at her directly. "I was sure you were someone… important" he said, cringing at the word. "When I discovered what I could do with this... _ miraculous _ gem, I wanted more of them… Not for me, but to free as many slaves as I could, but…"

"Coccinae made you understand that it wasn't the solution?" Completed Saewine in a low voice.

"Yeah, she was pretty clear ab-" He cut himself mid-sentence, snapping his head at Saewine. "How do you know her name?!" He asked, confused. "Pantheras is the only one knowing about it!"

Saewine grimaced at her slip of the tongue, then sighed in defeat. "You have a power named _ Cataclysm _ and mine is what I call a _ Lucky Charm _" she said matter-of-factly. “Tikki told me about Plagg’s power. Even if you never said it outloud, knowing Pantheras was in fact using the black gem, the way you managed to destroy things so we could escape makes perfect sense now.” She sighed, showing him the red gem that looked like an insect, the same shade of red that of the Scarlet Lady. 

“Wait…” stretched Phrixos, looking at her suspiciously. “These red and black weapons were created with your power?!” When Saewine nodded, he started laughing. “No wonder you didn’t want help for armors or weapons! You had it perfectly covered!!” When his fit of laughter calmed down, he turned to Saewine with a smirk on his features. "And no wonder the fact that I could magically change appearance didn't surprised you!"

Even if she was shily smiling, he could see her struggling with her next question, or was it from his reaction? He couldn’t tell, but he knew for sure he wanted to ask her a question. “Why didn’t you tell me?” they asked at the exact same time. They giggled, then Phrixos gestured at himself. 

“Allow me to answer first; I owe you that much” he said with a smile that faded rapidly. “I’m used to steal from rich people to have my own money to free slaves. I don’t always buy them from merchants; I also free my parents’ servants too, but Coccinae… _ you _ made me realise that it was useless, and I can’t agree more, but that was all I knew, all I could figure out.” He sighed deeply. “I was over excited when I saw what I could do with the black gem. I thought it’d be easier to steal with my new powers and let people forget about Phrixos. The first night I went out, I saw you. I wanted to have some fun before taking this wooden box from you. I acted normally because I thought you’d be able to understand I was using the black gem’s powers, that you’d be able to transform as I did and kick my butt to get your gem back. Everything went out the window when I realised you were a slave. You probably didn’t even know what you were carrying in this box in the first place.” He combed his hair with his fingers. “From then, I felt too ashamed to tell you the truth. I’ve put you in trouble with your master, and I didn’t want you to hate me for that…”

Saewine turned to him in shock. “My… opinion of you was that important?” He had a little smile and shrugged in a ‘I know, that was stupid’ way. She giggled, then laughed heartily. “Your opinion of me was what stopped me from telling you the truth, too!” At his intrigued gaze, she elaborated. “I’ve discovered my powers when I’ve been abducted by these headhunters. I’ve decided to use them to destroy as much of the slave selling booths as I could. I was happy, I was strong, I was independent. When a young noble came to me to offer his help, I brushed him off, knowing he would never propose his help if he knew that under this armor was a simple slave. Then, Pantheras told me he wanted to help me - _ her _, and I knew he really did, so I guided him… I didn’t know Phrixos, except that he was a noble, and that he was the one who stole from me. But I did know Pantheras, I knew he was helpful to the worthless slave I am, but I didn’t want him to know that the Scarlet Lady he talked so highly about was that slave who lived in the streets…” 

Phrixos slid his hand under Saewine's, leaving her the possibility to back off. "_ 'Worthless slave'_?!" He parroted in disbelief. "You are brave, funny, loyal… and beautiful…"

She scoffed. "And what about the girl sitting next to you?"

He leaned closer to her, a Pantheras smirk on his lips. "Who said I was talking about someone else?" Seeing her surprise, he leaned back, keeping his soft smile. "You are a wonderful person, Saewine. Yes, you are Coccinae, and I can't hide the fact that I…" He coughed, trying to hide his shyness. "... That I love her, but that means that I love you just as much." He paused a moment, taking in the fact that he just confessed to her. "I just hope that you'll one day find in yourself to forgive that stupid boy who stole from you…"

_ Wait… did he just…! _Saewine choked at the confidence. "You do realize you're in love with a slave, right?" He nodded slightly without breaking eye contact. "What about this concubine you brought back home? What will your parents think about it?"

"Let them think whatever they want, I don't care" he assured. "I called you 'concubine' just so my father leave you alone. His own concubines never leave his bedroom unhurt, and I didn't want something like this to happen to you."

Saewine was reassured by his answer and his reason, then smirked at the thought of what she was going to say. "And what warranty do I have that I won't leave your bedroom unhurt?" She had a devilish tone and it made Phrixos shiver, but in a good way. That wasn't new regarding Coccinae, but it sure was coming from Saewine...

He pushed her back playfully with a finger on the nose. "You're officially the first girl I ever invited in my room. The others were girls my parents bought for me and kind of forced me to have, and which I freed the same day or the day after." He got up, crossed his arms over his chest and turned his back to Saewine. “I don’t want you to feel forced to do anything you wouldn’t be comfortable with… I told you I wanted you to feel free, to be free, and that statement stays.” He turned back to her, his eyes pleading her to trust him. “If my feelings for you aren’t reciprocated, it’s fine by me. You can feel at home here for as long as you wish, no conditions.” His arms crossed tighter around his chest, Phrixos hugging himself with sheepishness. “I only hope that, despite all what happened, all what I’ve caused to you, we can at least become friends…”

Saewine averted her eyes to the black gem still on the table. Not everything that happened since that day - _ When was it? Two weeks ago? _ \- was bad. She found love when she met Pantheras, she became the Scarlet Lady and she met Phrixos who wanted to free her, who wanted to love her. She got up to join him, putting a soft hand on his arm. “I have to admit that I also have feelings for Pantheras if it wasn’t obvious enough when we were fighting together as Coccinae and Pantheras, but where you’ve had the possibility to know both sides of me, I could only know Pantheras, not Phrixos.” She felt herself blush furiously when he looked back at her in surprise. “Let me time to know Phrixos more before I decide how I feel about you.” He nodded slowly. That was fair. “However, I’m ready to forgive you if you come to my master’s house and explain to him how I got in trouble because of you” she added with a mischievous smile. “Because if you don’t, I’ll transform, call my _ Lucky Charm _ and smack it through your head, whatever I get, got it?”

Phrixos nodded, audibly swallowing in faked fear before the two of them start laughing. They continued talking for hours, presenting each other’s kwami and telling about their life in more details until sleep claimed them.

~~~

The day had finally come. Saewine guided Phrixos to her master’s house. The young noble felt his anxiety rise the nearer they got. He needed to come clear with the scholar that Saewine had done nothing wrong, that she did everything she could to get the stolen gem back to him. They agreed on a story convincing enough to not imply the use of the magical powers. “Master?” called Saewine in a small enough voice to stay submissive, but strong enough so he could hear her from the other side of the workshop. But only silence answered her. Was he out? Was he too busy to answer? Was he asleep? The later was unlikely at this time of the day, but he had this bad habit to work until early morning and sleep at his work desk. 

She entered the small habitation, Phrixos on her heels, looking all around. Tikki and Plagg happily left their hiding places to take advantage of the privacy of the house. The magical creatures were faster to check in every corner of the house to find Fulgentius. Tikki's cry of terror brought them to run to the workshop.

The old man was unconscious, hanging at the ceiling with a rope around the neck. Without thinking, Phrixos ran under the man to ease the weight of his limp body while Plagg barely touch the rope to break it. The young man slowly put the man on the ground while looking for any vital signs. He turned to Saewine with a concerned look. "He's alive. We need to put him to bed and look constantly on him." Tikki offered to take the first round. Her powers wouldn't heal him, but would certainly help.

While the kwami and Saewine stayed at Fulgentius's bedside, Phrixos took a look around in a mix of curiosity and respect. He wanted to look at anything weird or strange, but wouldn’t go to open boxes and drawers to do so. On a table near where they found the old man, the young one found a letter destined to Saewine. "Princess?" He softly called for her from the doorframe. "I found this for you." He added, extending the letter to her. 

She looked at the letter, then at her new friend, and shook her head. "Reading is still hard for me, and I don't feel like doing so right now." Her eyes were welling with tears. Even if she was good at it, her vision was too blurry.

Phrixos nodded in understanding and opened the letter, reading it out loud. "_ 'I'm sorry. I know I scared you, and now, I have nothing nor no one. I have studied magic for years, and now that I have finally found proofs, I have lost them. I could've had you to live for, but I have been stupid and scared you away from me. I have lost you as well. You are a brilliant and resourceful young girl, Saewine. I am sure you will find a way to live without me.' _ Wow…" he whispered at the end, realising Saewine was quietly sobbing. "I'm so sorry, Princess… I shouldn't have…"

She shook her head, looking at him with a soft smile. "Thank you…"

They stayed all day and all night at Fulgentius's side. When he came to his senses, Saewine was there, her soft smile welcoming him back to the living world. The old scholar looked at her for a moment, then understood what happened and rose just enough so he could warmly hug her. "I'm sorry" he murmured with a sore throat. "I'm so, so, so sorry…"

"Please, don't be" she answered softly, returning the embrace. "I'm the one who ran away…" She helped him to sit in his bed. "Please, don't be mad…"

"If you have to be mad at someone, be mad at me" added Phrixos from the doorframe, aware of the mage's awakening by eavesdropping the conversation. "I'm Phrixos of the Keijen family, and I stole one of the gems from Saewine, thinking she was wealthy enough to not be bothered by its loss."

"The Keijen family?" Repeated Fulgentius. "Aren't you already a prosperous family?" Phrixos nodded and told the old man the whole story, Saewine adding details regarding her parts. Fulgentius listened carefully. "What happened to Tikki and Plagg?" He inquired, worried about the kwamis. The little gods floated in front of him and, without even thinking about it, he grabbed them in his shaking hands and hugged them as tightly as he could. 

"Sir, I came here with Saewine to make sure she wouldn't get into trouble because of my foolishness, but also to ask you what it would cost me for you to free her" explained Phrixos, internally screaming for asking something so important like asking the price for a chair.

The mage took in Saewine's hopeful gaze and Phrixos's determinated one. The young noble had real feelings for his assistant, and she wasn't stranger to these feelings. He sighed deeply. "Let me get some rest and think about it, young Keijen" he said with a guttural voice. "We, after all, are talking about my most efficient assistant. She could cost you more than you can afford."

"I'll do whatever it takes to free her" he assured in a confident tone. "Please, Sir, take all the time you need to rest" he continued more calmly, but still self-assured. After he received the old man's thanks, Phrixos left them. He swore to himself that he would stop at nothing to free Saewine, even if it meant for him to test his _ Cataclysm _ on a human being.

The next day, Fulgentius was more alert and was speaking more normally. He stayed in bed however, Saewine forcing him to rest another day while she brought him his food. Gods, he missed her cooking! And he missed her. While silently eating, he thought about Phrixos’s request. _ Of course _ he would let Saewine go, but he wanted the young man to be good enough for her. During the day before, he had seen them act and talk, the way they looked at each other, and he knew. “Saewine?” he asked. When he got her attention, he added “Would you go fetch the young Keijen and leave us talk?”

“Right away, Master” she answered with a nervous smile. She knew he had taken his decision and anticipated the worst. 

The old mage greeted the young noble with a smile and invited him to sit beside him. "I have thought about your proposition regarding Saewine's freedom" he introduced. He saw Phrixos bracing himself to receive a bomb, or to call for Plagg's transformation, but he couldn't know the later. "I have decided that the price for her freedom was your words."

Phrixos jumped. "My _ what_?!" He sure didn't expect that one!

Saewine's soon-to-be former master giggled, glad of his effect. "Yes, young Keijen, your words. I want you to promise me you will take good care of her, that you will love her with all your heart and soul, and that you will never, ever treat her like the slave she's always been, but like the princess you claim her to be." 

Phrixos lowered his head, trying to hide a relieved smile. This man was a good man, a better man than he thought, and would never deserve a _ Cataclysm _ for whatever reason. "I promise" he said softly, but surely. "Saewine is absolutely fantastic and I would never just dream about hurting her in any way."

The mage seemed satisfied with this answer, but certainly wasn't done. "I also want you two to take good care of Tikki and Plagg." The young Keijen rose his head back at the old man, receiving all his attention. Fulgentius turned to his night table to take a journal he extended to Phrixos. It was the notebook he had put in the wooden box with the two gems, the notebook Saewine kept with her all this time and returned to him when she was looking after him. "You are without a doubt more educated than Saewine, so I will ask you to continue taking notes about the powers of the kwamis, about anything relevant to their magic, so one day, what I'd hope to achieve will finally serve its purpose."

Phrixos took the notebook solemnly, then turned to where Saewine was silently waiting out of earshot. Maybe… He excused himself a moment and exited the room to talk quickly to her, then returned to the old man's bedside accompanied by her and the two kwamis. They looked at each other, uncertain.

"Plagg, transform me."

"Tikki, transform me."

In a succession of green and pink flashes, Phrixos and Saewine became the now infamous Pantheras and Coccinae. The mage looked at the new couple standing next to him in shock, then in awe, to finally explode in a fit of laughter. He was now sure of two things: if Saewine was in fact Coccinae, she sure wouldn't have any problems protecting herself, and if he would die right now, it would be with a gigantic smile on his face.

~~~

"And after that, Saewine and Phrixos decided to buy a small house and lived there together" concluded Tikki with a nostalgic smile while petting Plagg's head. The black cat kwami fell asleep on Tikki's lap and she couldn't bring herself to scold him.

"And they lived happily ever after?" Asked Adrien while muffling a yawn.

"Kind of, but the story is still going on for a few years, and this is getting late for everybody." Tikki poked Plagg to awake him, which he did with a grumpy growl. "We'll continue another time" she assured, taking a look at Marinette who was snoozing on Adrien’s shoulder. 

The blond nodded, grabbed his wife in his arms bridal style, and went to bed. 

The TV show about heroes of the past?  
Which TV show?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will come eventually....  
Hope you like it so far!!!


	3. The First Guardians

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I think I had too much cheese…” the black kwami whined.   
“You can have too much cheese?!” Adrien asked in disbelief.   
“Technically, no” answered Tikki. “But if Plagg eats enough cheese, things can get… messy…”

Marinette came down from the kids’ bedrooms while Adrien was cleaning the dishes, watching the two kwamis at his side. Plagg was laying down on the counter in an almost cheese coma while Tikki was playfully poking at his belly. “I think I had too much cheese…” the black kwami whined. Tikki stopped mid-poke and looked at him worryingly. “Not  _ that _ much, Sugarcube!” Tikki sighed in relief and returned to her banter. 

Adrien almost dropped the plate he was holding. “You  _ can _ have too much cheese?!” he asked in disbelief. 

“Technically, no” answered Tikki with a smile. “We kind of have a black hole as a stomach.” Adrien turned his gaze to his cat kwami with a ‘ _ I knew it _ ’ smirk. “But if Plagg eats enough cheese, things can get… messy…”

Marinette sat at the island counter, munching at a wedge of Camembert Plagg had left on his plate. “I remember that time when Adrien had been turned into a statue of glitter by Style Queen. Master Fu said that you destroyed Atlantis and you said that it was because you had too much cheese.” With Plagg’s sheepish nod, she added “What happens when you  _ actually _ have too much cheese?”

The two deities exchanged a glance. Tikki’s was scolding her other half, while Plagg’s was still sheepish. “Let me tell you what happened to Saewine and Phrixos, okay? That’ll answer your question...”

~~~

A young lady with dark skin and frizzy black hair was roaming the streets, looking nervously behind her. One could think she had stolen something… if anyone was even paying attention. Ducking into a dark alley, she disappeared behind an heavy wooden door she promptly closed. Once inside, she sighed in relief and removed the shawl she was wearing, revealing her fancy, yet very light dancing clothes. For the modern eye, she would be dressed like a baladi dancer. 

"Athueni!" Greeted a middle-aged man. "You made it! Welcome!"

"Thank you, Olkerhan" she answered while taking a seat at the table the man was already seated at, serving her some refreshing drink. "Getting away from my master can be tricky sometimes…" She took a look around the modest house. "Am I the first one arrived?"

Olkerhan shook his head, smiling. "Chwilen is taking a nap. The poor guy is so overworked! Even I have more time for me, my stand and my farm than this kiddo..." He chuckled softly. "I'll wake him up when everyone's here." Athueni nodded before taking a sip, when a young teenager barged into the house, out of breath. "Seems like someone got caught red-handed again…" Olkerhan muttered. "Freyxen, are you all right?"

The teen gave a satisfied grin despite his panting. "Everything's fine!" He waited anguishely for the running footsteps outside to fade away before catching a sigh and joining Athueni at the table.

"One day, you'll end up with a rope around the neck, kid" grumbled the young woman without looking at him.

"And your head will end up on a spike, but I don't talk about it" he replied with an annoyed tone. 

"Could you just make peace at once?" Asked a tired male voice from a dark room.

"Hello, Chwilen!" Greeted Freyxen with a genuine smile. “Long time no see!”

“Rather ‘long time no sleep’” he yawned, while Olkerhan hid a chuckle behind his hand. “And I still have so much more to do, I’m gonna probably be able to sleep in a month or two…”

“Tell the Council and the Oracle to chill out a little!” the teen said with a frown.

“I’m glad to see the dynamic never changes here!” added a female voice from behind Chwilen, making him jump. The young noble moved to the side to let Coccinae get in the main room, promptly followed by her partner. They sat at the table, greeting everyone with a smile. “What are the news?” she asked once they were all reunited. 

"From what I've heard on the market, slave merchants keep a low profile" started Olkerhan. "But those who continue selling spend tons of money on mercenaries to protect them. Your next moves might be harder to plan" he advised, gaining a nod from Pantheras. 

"My friend Melyxan is impossible to find" added Freyxen while nervously fidgeting with his mug. "I don't know if she got caught for thievery or if she's been sold…"

Coccinae put a comforting hand on the teen's arm. "We'll look for her as soon as possible." Freyxen thanked her with a small nod, Athueni patting his shoulder slightly. They may not get along well, but she could be sympathetic when necessary.

"What about you?" Asked Pantheras to the dancer, her gesture having caught his attention. "Any news from around the island?"

"Nothing worth mentioning, actually…" she sighed. "Our group has performed in different districts in different cities, and same old, same old. Slaves to the left, slaves to the right. There are less slaves in Kettoro, but there are slaves nonetheless." She turned her gaze to the young thief beside her. "You'll tell me what your friend looks like, I'll tell you if I've seen her, or not."

Freyxen glared at her, then understood her phrasing and nodded sheepishly. "I may have heard about something, but it needs some investigation,... And an invitation from the Oracle…" intervene Chwilen. All heads turned to him in surprise, waiting for some more details, but he only shrugged. "Those are only rumors, but I've heard that the Oracle's son, Zelehanan, is gone from the palace. No one knows what exactly happened to him. Some say he's sick, others that he has been kidnapped for a ransom. As I said, nobody knows, and nobody talks…"

"I take notes" assured Pantheras, nodding to his Scarlet Lady. "I think we should start by looking for this Melyxan girl since she might be the easiest to find or to have clues as to what happened to her. Chwilen, if you learn anything new about the Oracle's son, send us your kwami" he added with a smirk.

He blinked in disbelief, unsure of what he'd heard. He looked to his friends to realise they heard the same thing. Coccinae giggled and reached for the ladybug on her wrist. The wings opened in a pink light and she  extirpated four stones of different colors. The stones looked like the statuettes she and Pantheras used to transform, not that their allies would know it. She extended her hand to give the yellow one to the young aristocrat. As soon as he got it in hand, a bee-like creature appeared in a flash of light the same color as its gem. Their allies knew about the fact that they had actual powers, but didn't know everything about them. "Chwilen Raxyos, meet Pollen, the kwami of Subjugation." She then turned to the farmer, giving him a purple one. "Olkerhan, this is Nooroo, the kwami of Generosity" Coccinae added as a butterfly kwami appeared in a purple light, bowing solemnly his head. When she approached the young boy, the later became as excited as a kid during Christmas Eve. She gave him a vivid orange gem as a fox-like kwami appeared. "Freyxen, this one's Trixx, kwami of Illusion." The boy greeted the magical creature with a warm hug. She finally turned to the dancer.

Athueni shook her head slowly. "I don't think this is a good idea to have one" she sighed. "My master could think I stole it and take it from me."

The blue gem illuminated and a peacock kwami appeared. "I'm Dusuu, kwami of Sentiments" she introduced herself. "You can bring me with you for now and we'll try to find a way to hide it from your master, if you give me the chance!" The dancer looked at her new magical friend, then nodded, smiling affectionately.

Freyxen peeked up from Trixx’s fur to look at Pantheras. “So we’ll be able to have powers like you and kick butts?”

Pantheras laughed heartily before answering. “Not yet” he said, still giggling. “Because we kind of transformed by accident, Coccinae and I, we decided to fix some rules with the kwamis to protect your identity and ours.”

"First, we want to make sure you will get along with your kwamis" continued Coccinae. "Second, if your kwami decides that you are worthy, they'll give you a…  _ catch phrase _ to transform. This is the kind of phrase that you aren't likely to use in an everyday conversation. Third, even if they'll do what you ask them, they won't ever be able to tell our real name as long as you don't know it by yourself."

"You're putting your life at risk by helping us the way you do, so if you can't tell who we are because you just don't know, that might actually save your life" concluded Pantheras with a serious tone, making sure everyone understood the situation. “Guards still think we are like this all the time and are only looking for us as we are right now. If they knew we actually transform and have another appearance, this could lead them to us, our families and friends. Knowing and telling our real identity could bring harm to more people than just the two of us. The day you’ll transform as well, it’ll be important to keep that in mind. We’re taking a risk at just letting each of you know about the others, but giving you a  _ miracle gem _ independently could be even more dangerous than giving them all at the same time…” With that said, they ended their secret meeting and split.

The couple of super-outlaws ran on the rooftops to a simple, but cosy house. They jumped in the luxurious garden behind a bunch of bushes and released their transformation. 

They passed by a small monument decorated with specific flowers. Saewine put a soft hand on top of the tombstone looking like a pillar, whispering greetings to it. Fulgentius got ill a few days after they saved him from his suicide attempt, but was too weak to recover from it. As they got into the house, they were greeted by a middle-aged man. “Good morning, Phrixos!” he said with a soft smile as he bowed his head. “Good morning, Lady Saewine! You are as beautiful as always!”

“Rostoph…” Phrixos scolded with a grin as Saewine giggled behind her hands, slightly blushed. “If you continue hitting on my wife, I might get jealous!”

Rostoph backtracked with false horror in his features. “I would never!” he said while taking Saewine’s hand to plant a gentle kiss on her knuckles. The young woman couldn’t stop chuckling as the two men were friendly fighting over her. Rostoph was too old to her likings anyway and they all knew it. “Sir” he finally said with a more serious tone. “I have a favor to ask, if I may…”

“Of course, old friend!” Phrixos answered with a smile, the three of them resuming their way to the house.

The servant was visibly nervous, but seeing the couple’s patient smile, he took a breath and spoke. “My eldest son is coming to adulthood soon, and I’d like to buy him a good bow. I saw one at the smith, but I am still too short to buy it… I was wondering-”

“Sure!” cut Phrixos. “How much do you need?”

He hesitated. “One week of salary…” He started to panic. “I’ll refund you, I swear!”

“Nonsense” intervened Saewine. “We were talking yesterday about giving you a raise anyway. You’re doing such a great job with everything! Phrixos’s parents must regret their choice at letting you go to ‘serve’ their son!”

“I like this idea of my parents regretting a slave they never cared about…” he grumbled, deadpanned. He turned again to Rostoph. “Say the price and I’ll see to it” he assured. 

“Thank you” mumbled Rostoph, smiling gratefully, then he returned outside. Saewine and Phrixos shared a glance with a knowing smile. Since he asked to his parents to bring Rostoph with him, which they accepted without batting an eye, Phrixos could see the difference between a slave being treated as a slave, and a slave being treated as an employee. They had recruited some slaves with the years, keeping them under their wings. For the outsiders, they still were slaves, but in reality, these people were working for them, receiving a salary everyday and being treated like actual human beings. Rostoph had become some sort of butler, taking care of anything and everything around the house. His tired, forced smile had become a genuine one, and if it had to come to it, they were sure he would go to sacrifice his life for either of them.

They got to their bedroom, Tikki and Plagg getting out of their hiding places. To the couple’s surprise, they stopped, fixing an empty space. After a moment of soft talking, Tikki turned back to Saewine. “There’s a new kwami who wishes to work with us!” she announced with a happy dance in the air. Saewine nodded in understanding and turned to the wooden box that contained so many memories already. Inside were small compartments in which there were different types of gems and stones. 

With the other kwamis, they had realised that not every little god was attracted by the same type of stone. Pollen, for example, had been attracted by amber rather than jade like for Tikki and Plagg. Knowing that, they had searched Fulgentius’s stuffs and the market to find a variety of different stones. Saewine turned the box to the spot the kwamis were talking to and invited the invisible god to select a gem. The green jade then illuminated with a green light and transformed into a turtle creature. The turtle understood it was now visible to the human world when Phrixos and Saewine greeted it with a smile. “Greetings” it said, bowing respectfully. “I am Wayzz, kwami of Wisdom. I grant the power of Protection.”

“It’s an honor to meet you, Wayzz”, said Phrixos. “Thank you for joining us.” They then made sure to put Wayzz’s gem in a safe place, let the kwamis recharge, and got out to transform and look for Freyxen’s friend.

~~~

They found her the next day, unhurt, but in need of rest. Headhunters had caught her and were about to sell her to the other side of the island. They sent her to Olkerhan who they knew would happily share his house and meal with her. 

But apparently, words of their victory - since Melyxan wasn’t the only person about to being sold that they rescued - didn’t fall in deaf ears . Two days later, Pollen came to the Keijen’s house in urgency. In her little paws was a roll of paper she carried with surprising easiness. “This comes from Chwilen” she announced as soon as Phrixos got it in hands. “But guards and messengers are distributing this everywhere in the city at the moment. Chwilen thought it would be a good idea to let you know beforehand.”

Because Saewine still had troubles at reading, Phrixos read the public announcement to her. “ _ To Coccinae and Pantheras. I invite you to meet me at the Citadel to discuss an urgent, but personal matter. Your passage, in and out, will remain safe and, if you ever succeed at your mission, all your past actions will be cleared. _ ” He stopped, shocked. “This is an invitation from the Oracle himself! What should we do!?”

Saewine glanced at Pollen with a curious look. “Is Chwilen responsible for this missive?” She asked, remembering what he’d told them not long ago. 

“Yes and no” answered the bee kwami. “The Oracle asked the Council for a solution, and Chwilen, as an assistant to said Council, suggested your help and He agreed to speak with you. He is responsible for the idea, not for the letter itself.” The anti-heroes shared a worried look. 

~~~

The guards blocked their way to the Citadel. They knew who they were and soon enough, there were twice the number of guards stopping them. Coccinae approached the one who seemed in command and gave him the letter. “We are promised a safe passage” she reminded him, pointing at the missive. The commander looked at the public announcement, sighed and nodded, beckoning them to follow him. As they moved forward, the guards split, forming kind of a guard of honor. That felt strange, but they had to keep their composure. Showing any sign of weakness could cause their loss.

Phrixos and Saewine had agreed to let the young man discuss with the Oracle. Saewine could be bold when she was fighting guards or high-class people when she was her alter-ego, but they were here for a more diplomatic matter, and Saewine didn’t feel classy enough to keep her tongue tied and not make them thrown in jail for the rest of their lives. The commander made them pass through several rooms, all more decorated and grandiose than the one before until they got to the Main Chamber. The heroes were surprised by the size of the room, but also by the simplicity of it. There wasn’t a throne, but a simple but exquisite bench. On their left, near the windows, was a large table with a few chairs near it. 

A man in elegant clothes was bent over the table, looking intently at what was on it. He looked up when the commander demanded for his attention. His frown changed to surprise when he saw his guests. He thanked the commander and invited them to get closer.  “What an honor to have you here!” he said with a beam.

Pantheras bowed his head in salutation, closely followed by his partner. Only when the Oracle answered them did he finally spoke. “All honor is ours, Oracle. In what can we be of service?”

Oracle Davitennae looked at them for a few seconds, just enough time for him to have a better idea of the people he was addressing to. He could already see that Pantheras was from an aristocratic family by his way of speaking and his posture. Coccinae, despite of her fierce and bold reputation, seemed to come from a lower class, bowing lower than average and keeping her gaze to the ground as often as possible. For a moment, he was grateful to speak with Pantheras instead of Coccinae. “I have a delicate affair I can’t entrust to anyone, especially not to the city’s guards since they can’t all be trusted” he introduced, Pantheras conceding. How many times did his parents save his butt by bribing the guards? They sometimes addressed each other by name. “You might have heard about my son, Zelehanan, being missing from the Citadel?”

“We have only heard rumors of different kinds and sources” notified the black cat hero. “Is Zelehanan alright?”

Davitennae sadly sighed. “He is not.” To Pantheras’s cringe, he added “That is why you are here since this is the kind of mission you give yourselves.” Pantheras nodded to the Oracle in understanding, inviting the great man to continue. “My dear son has been abducted by head-hunters. I have sent guards looking for him, and one of them came back with some intel. Apparently, he has been sold as a slave to the Oracle of Kettoro, Tarrameyah Rughen. I need you, I beg you to free and return him to me. If you succeed, every past charges will be cleared, and the guards will look away in the future.” Their alter-ego being cleared from the guards black-lists and saving a life in the process; hard to say ‘no’ to that!  Pantheras agreed to the deal and they left the Citadel.

~~~

They rent a carriage and, two days later, were on their way to Kettoro. The qastapi, which will be later known by the modern paleontologists as megaloceros, was a magnificent creature Saewine had never seen before. They were usually used for long distance travels because of their large antlers which were difficult to maneuver inside the city’s gates. The females, called qastapia, were smaller with near to no antlers, and were usually used as mounts. As they entered the carriage, Saewine remembered the last time she had to leave the city of Niroondi. And being kidnapped and shoved in a box to be sold was not something she wanted to think about at the moment. She had to concentrate on their mission: they had a young lord to save.

Kettoro being five days away, Phrixos and Saewine had some time to discuss. “How do you think would be best to proceed?” the young man asked.

“I hesitate between straight to the jaw or the kneecap” answered Saewine, deadpanning. “I didn’t make my mind yet.”

“Princess…” gently scolded her husband while Plagg exchanged an approving grin with her. “Wouldn’t it be best to ask first?”

“‘Forgive me, your Jerkness, have you bought a slave you certainly had recognised to be your neighbor’s son?’” she sarcastically answered. “Do you really think She doesn’t know who She bought?”

“Well, I don’t want to hit first and ask questions later” he replied, Tikki nodding beside him.

“And I don’t want to ask questions and be taken for a moron” she pointed out before grimacing. “You… You know how I feel about high-class people, and we’re talking about the highest-of-the-highest-class people. You are nothing compared to Them, so imagine how They’d consider me! Either They lie or say the truth, we have to take Their words for granted and deal with them! If She says ‘He’s not here’, we’ll never be able to confirm that!”

“What do you suggest?” Phrixos asked. “Except destroying their Citadel with a Lucky Charm” he added, seeing a glint of anger in his wife’s gaze.

She sighed, disappointed, then paused to think. “You don’t want to break Her nose, and I want to make sure She’ll tell the truth…”

Phrixos gently took her hand by the fingertips with a soft smile. “Alright, I know what to do.  Just follow your rogue’s lead…”

~~~

The Sun had disappeared behind the horizon since a while now, and the stack of papers to sign and invitations to decline never seemed to lower. She massaged her temples with a sigh. Better get going to bed. But as she was about to make the move, an arm wrapped around her shoulders and a blade came in contact with her throat's skin. "I have questions, and you better provide the truth" said a male voice behind her. A life threat. Great. She needed that, now.

She sighed, strangely calm despite the situation. "And how could you know I am speaking the truth, and not telling what you wish to hear?" She answered softly, but with confidence. She sensed movements behind her. There was another person in the room.

The blade moved slightly and the hold on her shoulders shifted. He was getting nervous. "I'm only hoping you will collaborate and speak truthfully" the man said softly, too softly for a bandit. 

She decided she might have some fun after all. "Alright, speak. What do you wish to know?"

"We have been sent here by Oracle Davitennae Morganook of Niroondi to fetch His son. Intel told Him he had been sold to you as a slave. We desire to bring him back safely to his father, nothing more."

Hmm… that was strangely interesting. "You are in my room, threatening me, on behalf of simple information about a child who may or may not be here in the first place? What about glory and fortune? I am, after all, the Oracle of a great city, completely at your mercy."

The blade moved slightly away. "We have no need for these. We're only here for Zelehanan. Let him go peacefully and no blood will be spread."

That seemed honest and the other person was agreeing by their silence. But some things stayed at the back of her head and she needed to clarify them. "Then I shall fix some of your information first" she notified, stacking back some of her paperwork. "May I get up, so I can show you and your friend how you have been mislead?"

There was a moment of silence before the arm and the blade were completely removed from her person. "Alright, but remember to behave properly" said the man as he gave her some space. "My blade may not be at your throat anymore, but your life is still at stake."

Tarrameyah nodded and, as she got up from her chair, could finally see those thugs' faces and, for the first time in a while, got properly surprised. This was way different from what she'd expected. She guided them through the corridor to a closed door. "Hawkiniel?" She called after knocking.

There were movements on the other side before the door opened, showing the bed head of a teenager. "Yes, Mother?" He asked in a yawn.

"These people would need to speak with Zelehanan, could you wake him up, please?" She asked softly, showing Pantheras and Coccinae by a slight nod.

The boy got nervous all of a sudden. "What? No! Zelehanan might be in his room! He sure isn't here! You certainly are mistaking!"

"Niel, I am your mother" she scolded with a smirk.

The boy knew exactly what it meant and didn't push. With a sigh, he turned to where must have been the bed. "Zel, Love, wake up. There are people for you…"

_ Zel?  _ _   
_ _ Love?! _

"Nah… I don'wanna" answered a tired voice, confusing the heroes more and more.

Tarrameyah's smile widened at the couple's reaction. "Zelehanan, these people are here on your father's request to bring you back to Niroondi" she called, knowing exactly what answer she would get.

There were multiple  _ thumps _ coming towards the door, another boy showing from behind Hawkiniel. "What!?" He exclaimed, visibly distressed. "But Father agreed to send me here! He even was happy for me to be here! Why would he want me to come back now?" He took a look at the strangers and frowned. "And why would he send  _ you _ of all people?" He asked more calmly, but now on a defensive way. "He  _ despises _ you!"

Puzzle pieces started to click together. The two partners exchanged a worried look before stepping back from the door and the Oracle. They had been tricked by their leader and were now not only in the wrong, but they also appeared as the bad guys. "Guards!" Tarrameyah called in a strong voice. In a snap of the fingers, tens of men in armor surrounded the niroondians. Coccinae balled her fists, ready to call for a  _ Lucky Charm _ , but Pantheras stopped her with a shake of the head. They had little chances to get out of there without hurting anyone, the kids were too near to his liking, and they needed to know more about what was going on. "Commander, bring them to the Main Chamber."

"Yes, Ma'am!" She watched them as they went away, calmly following the guards. She sighed, made a wink to her son and his boyfriend to reassure them, and returned to her bedroom. She needed to change for more appropriate clothes, and a strong black tea wouldn’t be a luxury.  Tonight would be a sleepless night.

~~~

The guards had forced them to sit on the ground and had bound their hands in their back. They didn’t know the ropes weren’t strong enough to stop them, but the couple had agreed to behave peacefully, so they let them think they were unable to free themselves. They had so many questions they couldn’t just run away, even to save their skin. When Tarrameyah entered the Main Chamber, the guards saluted her, then forced their prisoners to stand. She passed in front of them, unimpressed. “You’ve attempted to my life” she reminded them. “Do not think you are the first ones to ever do so, and that I will let you go that easily.” She paused, looking at them, reading their features like a book. They were lost children, unable to comprehend what they had been put into, unable to put all the pieces together. “I usually burn alive those to attempt to my life or my son’s, and I have burned enough men and women to provide to the smith what he would need to forge me and my qastapia a whole new armor.” She smiled at the horror that passed through their eyes. “You understand now how little chances you had to win over me in the first place…”

Their blood ran cold. Not only did they messed up, but they messed up badly. “Please, Oracle Tarrameyah” suddenly pleaded Pantheras. “If we have to die because of our mistake, help us understand what is going on!” 

To his surprise, she smiled warmly. “I told you you had been mislead.” She sighed. “I know who you are, Coccinae and Pantheras.” Shock passed on their face. “You are quite renown throughout the entire island, you know? And, well, I know Davitennae too. You being sent here by his orders does not surprise me as much at it does you, it seems.” She turned to the commander. “Free them and leave us” she ordered. 

“Oracle!? Are you sure?” he asked, bewildered.

“Certain” she assured with a genuine smile. The man nodded in understanding and did as he was told, beckoning his men to follow him outside the Chamber. The couple exchanged a flabbergasted glance. Once they were alone, she made sure the door was properly closed and turned back to them. “Let us see… Davitennae despises you as Zelehanan stated, and I sure understand why.” She paused, waiting to see if they did know why. They didn’t. “You are ruining Atlantis’s economy by destroying the slave market, and ruining Niroondi’s reputation as the most profitable city in this domain. But do not get me wrong; I do approve of what you-”

“How so!?” cut Coccinae, visibly offended. “Kettoro may have less slaves in the lower population, but there are slaves nonetheless! How can you pretend to approve if you still allow slaves in the first place?”

Tarrameyah looked at the Scarlet Lady in surprise while Pantheras gulped in terror. He knew how bold his wife could be while transformed, but lacking respect to an Oracle was sure to put them in more troubles they already were. To his surprise though, she laughed and gently shook her head. “Then you have been brought to think as the rest of the island” she said. After a moment, she added “Every citizen in Kettoro is free. I do not approve of slavery, but I have to keep the illusion to the other Oracles. I have elected laws that forbid ‘masters’ to hurt their ‘slaves’ in any way, and I provide these ‘slaves’ with a salary allowing them to live comfortably. Outsiders see that as slavery, but they are paid workers.”

Pantheras paused to think for a moment. This was completely crazy. “If I understand correctly, Oracle Davitennae sent us here to free His son. He knew he was here willingly, so we would have passed as bad guys kidnapping a child if we had decided to take him directly."

"Davitennae is not thrilled by the fact that his son prefers boys over girls, but since my son does too, they connected quickly and Davitennae and I saw this as an opportunity for an alliance between our cities" Tarrameyah added. "Davitennae would have like to have a heir of his own blood, but the stars did not granted his wish. I care not. I love my son and I like Zelehanan just as much. Sending you could have cause incidents in which his son or mine could have been fatally injured."

Pantheras grumbled. "I can't believe a great man such as Him could plan something so terrible…" He shook his head, then proceeded to resume. "He knew you would be able to defend yourself if we had decided to attack you, say, in a more violent way than we did. We know we ruin the slave market; that’s the goal after all. He chose us because He knew we couldn’t say ‘no’ to rescuing a child sold as a slave, but He knew more than us in what He was sending us…”

“He might have planned it all to get rid of you” concluded Tarrameyah. “You were a pebble in his shoe.”

“But why?” asked Coccinae, calmer towards the Oracle of Kettoro, but still angry. “Okay, I get the part where He wants to get rid of us; we’re pretty-hard-to-catch out-laws, but why all this? I mean… He could have send His announcement to lure us in the Citadel, then betray us there! Why all the trouble to send Zelehanan here? Why all the trouble to send us here?”

“Davitennae is a clever man who knows what he wants” notified Tarrameyah. “But I will agree with you. There is a piece of the puzzle we are missing.”

They stayed in silence for a few minutes, thinking, trying to figure out Oracle Davitennae’s master plan. Unlike Tarrameyah and Pantheras, Coccinae was more a practical woman, looking for action rather than strategy. She quickly lost interest in the mystery and started to look around the Main Chamber. She soon found a table, strangely resembling the one in Niroondi’s Citadel. On it was a map of the island and pions of different colors were scattered all over. “Excuse me, Oracle Tarrameyah?” she called. “I saw a table like this one in the Main Chamber of Niroondi’s Citadel. Is this a strategy game?” If she could pass some time by playing with them, better know the rules first. Maybe she could practice this game with Phrixos and improve her strategy skills?

Tarrameyah shook her head, smiling, but a little confused at the subject. “No, this is a representation of every guarded posts around the island. The white pieces represent my forces, and the red ones are Niroondi’s.”

Coccinae frowned; something looked wrong.  “The red ones are not where I’ve seen them on Oracle Davitennae’s table, though.”

Tarrameyah and Pantheras exchanged a surprised glance. “When did you notice that!?” he asked. 

“While you were talking to Him for this crappy mission” she answered before cringing at her choice of word. “I mean… uh… While He wasn’t paying attention to the insect I am, I could take a look around and saw his table and the pieces were not where they are here. Since this thing isn’t a board game, but representation of real life,...”

“It means Davitennae has moved his troops and probably got rid of any scouts around… He might even want to attack Kettoro!” completed Tarrameyah. “He might have planned that, even if you would not have been able to kill me, I would have been injured enough to be unable to command my army to defend our city. You being out of the picture above that would have get things even easier for him!” She joined Coccinae to the table. “Do you remember where were the pions?” Coccinae nodded and placed them as closely as she could remember. This time, the Oracle grumbled. “This is bad… His troops will be by the border in two days! That bastard!” She mumbled. “COMMANDER!!” She called, visibly pissed. When the man entered the Chamber with force, she calmed him down with a sign of the hand. She wasn’t in danger. “Assemble your troops and prepare Kettoro for attack! Close the city’s gates!”

“Yes, Ma’am!”

When he left, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves, then turned to the magical couple. “By these info, you might have saved our city” she let them know with a smile. “I think you have earned your Pardon.” They sighed in relief and asked to return to where they were staying, promising to return and help however they could. They had been betrayed by their Oracle, but seemed to have found an ally in Kettoro’s one.

~~~

> _ “I fail to understand how this is relevant to Plagg eating too much cheese...” commented Marinette, pouting.   
_ _ Tikki smiled. “We’re getting to it, don’t worry!” _

The day had come. Saewine had sent Tikki to deliver a message to their allies in Niroondi, and to inform them how they had been tricked by their Oracle. The kwami was back, but was exhausted. However, Saewine needed to transform and Tikki agreed. Coccinae then took Wayzz’s statuette and, with a nod from the turtle kwami, went to the Main Chamber where Tarrameyah was giving her last instructions to the commander. “Coccinae!” she greeted her with a smile when the man left. “Are you and Pantheras ready?”

“Ready as we’ll ever be” she answered, making sure they were now completely alone. Once done, the green kwami emerged from behind Coccinae, surprising the Oracle. “Tarrameyah Rughen, Oracle of Kettoro, meet Wayzz, kwami of Wisdom.”

The woman looked at Wayzz with wide eyes, then smiled and extended her hand to the magical creature. “I suppose your kind makes people like Coccinae and Pantheras?” she asked, surprising the red warrior.

“Indeed. I grant the power of Protection” said the turtle. “I think you and I were meant to work together. You prove to be wise on your own by taking the time to analyse every aspects of the situation when Coccinae and Pantheras attacked you.”

“You were there?” questioned the Oracle, tilting her head. The kwami nodded. “Then I suppose this war will end up differently than I had anticipated…” 

“You could be surprised” replied Coccinae with a smirk. “I just hope they’ll be here in time!”

“Oracle!” interrupted the commander. “They’re here…”

A moment later, Pantheras had joined the ladies in the Citadel courtyard, and Tarrameyah’s esquire was bringing her qastapia. “Bring them mounts as well” she ordered.

“It won’t be necessary” stopped Pantheras before he turned back to the Oracle. “With Wayzz’s help, you will probably prefer to keep her safe in her stable” he added with a lower voice. 

“Wait, are you  _ that _ strong!?” Tarrameyah asked, bewildered. 

They shared a smile. “We always prefered to keep a low profile, so people wouldn’t be  _ too _ scared of us, but with what’s going on, I intend to go all for it and ‘unleash the beast’!!” grinned Coccinae.

Tarrameyah nodded in understanding, let go of her qastapia who walked back to her box, and took hold of her new gem. “Wayzz, shell on” she demanded. Green light enveloped her for a moment, then stood in front a them a new person in green armor. She took her shield in hands and, with a sign of the head, they were gone, joining the first line.

The fight started hard, men and women falling like flies on both sides of the battlefield. Tarrameyah became anxious for her people, for her city. She saw Pantheras and Coccinae fighting together in coordinated moves, showing her how they had done this for years now, and sighed in relief, happy to have them on  _ her _ side. But things weren’t going smoothly. They needed backups, and fast. Coccinae had promised her help was on its way, so she prayed that they weren’t there too late. As she was thinking this, she heard the cry on a bird, but the force of its cry was so strong she had goosebumps.  _ What is coming out from the Great Abysses!? _ When she looked up, she saw a flying monster landing between the two lines, right next to the black and the red heroes. She joined them, mesmerized by the giant peacock in front of her. 

“I was getting scared you wouldn’t make it in time, guys!” greeted Pantheras with a beam. 

“Well, Caerulea wasn’t sure how to work her powers, so we got kinda lost…” came a young male voice before a teenager in an orange, fox-themed costume jumped off the bird.

“You can talk!” grumbled a woman in a blue dress as she followed. “You useless fox!”

“It’s Vulpex to you!” replied the young fox.

“I’m glad to see the dynamic never changes here!” giggled Coccinae while a yellow archer and a purple fencer got off the bird’s back right before it disappeared in a dark blue mist. 

Tarrameyah looked at them, a little confused. " _ These _ are our reinforcements? They don't know more than I do how to use their powers!"

The black cat smiled, surprised to hear her speak in a more common way. "They may lack in experience, but they had more time to bond with their kwami. Your wisdom and personal experience make up for the little time you've spent with yours."

She agreed with his logic and came forward. "Call me Clypea. We agreed about keeping me in charge of this battle." The other heroes introduced themselves. The yellow archer was called Iaculam and the purple fencer named himself Akum.

And with the seven of them, the battle ended a few hours later, turning in their favor. The niroondians surrendered. Those strong enough to make their way back to Niroondi were free to go, and those too injured were offered hospitality and medical attention. Tarrameyah also offered to the niroondians to stay and become kettoroans, but they would lose any rank they had in Niroondi. To her surprise, an impressive number of soldiers agreed to stay. 

To the heroes, she offered the same, except they would become the heads of her army, her Counselors and, more importantly, her friends. They sure did more for her city than any person in the atlantean history. They accepted happily. 

The Oracle organized a great feast to celebrate their victory. Anyone in Kettoro was invited. Tikki was still exhausted from her race to Niroondi and back, and by the fight, but she could enjoy some sweets and pastries. While the other kwamis ate to their heart content, Plagg was destroying the cheese platters. "Calm down, floating stomach!" Teased Phrixos with a chuckle.

"Say what you want, you're not the one who used the  _ Cataclysm _ more than necessary!” he replied as Phrixos was leaving him, still laughing. But as some time passed and Plagg was emptying the plates, the cat kwami felt some grumbles from his stomach. That was new…

~~~

“Wait” cut Marinette. “I’ve heard that some people tend to have…  _ gases  _ when they eat too much cheese…” The two kwamis exchanged a glance, but remained silent.

Adrien’s blood ran cold and he hardly swallowed a lump. “You can use your  _ Cataclysm _ by only blowing like you would on a feather! You’ve helped me escape like this when I’ve been captured by the Scarlet Gorizilla” he remembered with a frown. “What could happen if you…”

Tikki sighed. “He could destroy an entire island…”

“YOU FARTED ATLANTIS AWAY!?” he shouted, Marinette signing him to lower his voice to not awake the kids, even though she was as shocked as he was. “I’ve been living with a potential  _ atomic bomb _ during all this time, and I’m learning  _ now _ how destructive you can be on your own!?”

Marinette turned to her husband, her brows knitted. “He destroyed from the Eiffel tower to the Montparnasse tower with a gentle pat.” 

Plagg giggled sheepishly, answering the blond man. “You better stay away if I sneeze…”

Seeing Adrien’s horrified face, Tikki resumed her story.

~~~

The ground shook under their feet. People were panicking, running in every directions. Houses crumbled like houses of cards. It felt like nowhere was safe anymore. Phrixos came back to Plagg. “What in the stars happened!?” he screamed over the deafening noise, but holding the kwami in his hands, he realised he was in an almost cheese coma. “I  _ told _ you to calm down, didn’t I?” he scolded, but it was too late. The man looked around in the forming chaos, searching for his wife. “Saewine!” he cried as he joined her in a hurry. “You have to transform and put people to safety! Plagg is completely knocked out!”

“I can’t!” she replied, showing him Tikki, sound asleep in her hands. “Once she ate, she curled up and fell asleep. I can’t wake her up!” Tikki had it hard, and since it looked like she could sleep, she did and completely shut down. They looked around, searching for an escape, but chaos was everywhere, either from the people or their surroundings. They found a group of people who, despite the situation, was visibly calmer than the rest, giving instructions and directions so people could hope to save their life. 

The hero couple looked at each other, desperate. They were heroes. They  _ needed _ to help in  _ any way _ . They ran to the group. “Are you alright?” asked Chwilen.

“You can find shelter under the bridge” added Tarrameyah as she directed other folks there. 

Saewine took Chwilen’s hands and put something in them, Phrixos giving Tarrameyah some sort of messenger bag. “Take care of them for us” pleaded Saewine before she ran into the chaos with her husband.

“RUN!” shouted Phrixos while he still was at earshot distance. “Guard them with your lives and souls!”

And with that, they disappeared behind a cloud of dust and debris. The group looked at what they were given and stared in shock. Chwilen had a red and a black kwamis in hands, and in Tarrameyah’s messenger bag were a journal and a wooden box. They looked in the direction where these two strangers had vanished.  _ Coccinae and Pantheras… _

They understood they wouldn’t be able to help in any other way, and they were given their last instructions from their leaders: protect Plagg and Tikki. The world was collapsing on itself. There was nothing more to do. Athueni transformed to her alter-ego and summoned a giant peacock. 

As they flew away, they could see the devastation under their feet. Clefts were forming and gigantic waves of water and lava engulfed the island. After what felt like hours, it was like Atlantis had never existed. 

~~~

“That was the last time we’ve seen our first Partners” concluded Tikki with sorrow. “At first, they were only a thief and a slave, but they were heroes at heart, either they had magical powers or not…”

“Maybe they did make it?” asked Marinette, trying to cheer her friend.

“They didn’t since, soon after Atlantis’s disappearance, the magical seal preventing us to reveal our Chosen’s identity was lift and we were able to talk about them to the others.” She wiped a tear and continued. “Athueni, Olkerhan, Chwilen, Freyxen and Tarrameyah brought us to the continent and became the first Guardians by default.”

“What were their tasks as Guardians?” questioned Marinette. She, after all, had been chosen as Guardian by Master Fu some years ago, but even if she had received some training, Master Fu had been an apprentice when he became the last Guardian. “And how did the other kwamis came to exist in our world?”

“That is a story for yet another time” answered the ladybug kwami.

Marinette sighed, then turned to Adrien to know what he was thinking about all that. He was transfixed to his kwami, still in shock. “Adrien?” she softly called in concern.

“An atomic bomb…” he mumbled, pale face. “My cat’s a  _ freaking _ atomic bomb!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is where I've stopped thinking about my fic. I want to add chapters, but I don't know where to go from here.   
If you want to participate, by suggesting prompts, arts or an entire chapter, please contact me here or on [Tumblr](http://clawsout83.tumblr.com). I'd be more than happy to take you in my enormous team of two!


End file.
